Bittersweet
by KittenRainbow
Summary: With one mistake, everything is turned upside down, and nothing will be the same. Such a bitter travesty, but perhaps something sweet will come of it at the end? (Be advised that this story will contain mature content at some points.) Please read and review! c:
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note: This is a new story that is quite different than the others. It is a _Yaoi/Mpreg_ story between Mr. L and my FC, Wolfie Mario, in which Mr. L is the dominant hand. If you do not like any of this kind of stuff, don't read it, please.  
****If you do not know who Wolfie Mario is, head over to deviantART and search for BabyAbbieStar. You shall find more info on him there. :)**

**I hope you like it! Reviews will be appreciated, and if I get any flames, it just proves that you can't obviously read directions. XD I'll just use those flames to cook my marshmallows on!**

* * *

"He is such a cutie, especially when he sleeps," Mr. L thought. His gloved hand slowly reached out and softly stroked Mario's cheek.

A few hours earlier, Mr. L and Wolfie Mario were hanging out - as Mr. L liked to call it - at the Field of Paper Flowers. The two had spent quite a lovely afternoon there together, playing within the colorful flowers, playing hide-and-seek and tag, and trying to catch the little butterflies, which only Mario could do perfectly, as he was gentle, yet quick. Then, when Mr. L had gotten tired, he sat out and watched the little wolf play happily in the Field.

Sunset soon approached, and Mario had also gotten tired, though his fatigue was greater than the Green Thunder's. His blue eyes were growing heavy, and he was yawning constantly. Mr. L saw this and smiled. He walked over and picked Mario up easily, bridal-style. "Come on, I'll let you sleep at my house tonight," he whispered.

Mario struggled to stay awake. "But...wh-what about Luigi...? Shouldn't we...tell him?" he whispered, his eyes half-open.

"Don't worry about him. Besides, your little worrywart of a brother needs to calm down and not be all frantic about you all the time. I think he should be able to handle one night without you," Mr. L reassured. With that, he turned and started walking towards his home.

* * *

Mr. L had gently put Mario to bed, making sure his pillows were fluffed and the blankets were warm. The little wolf fell asleep shortly after. Mr. L kissed his hand and pressed it on Mario's forehead, then he went out the room and walked downstairs, planning to turn out the light later. He headed into the kitchen, putting away the last of the clean dishes from the dishwasher and wiping the countertop clean. While he was doing this, Mr. L noticed the blue bottle of Booquila on the edge of the countertop, a very strong liquor that was named after the crafty Boos. It was named so because while the intoxicating effects are great, it would do almost no physical damage to the body after the hangover passed, almost like a ghost. You could still think, but your judgement and reasoning would be heavily distorted, as well as your speaking. He decided that a few sips wouldn't hurt, so he uncapped the bottle and drank a cup's worth from it. Feeling satisfied, he continued doing his work. He straightened out the dining room, and put away the two guitars he had out in the living room. Without thinking, he kept uncapping the bottle from time to time and drinking more Booquila, each drink taking longer each time.

By the time Mr. L was finished with the mild housework, the bottle of Booquila was empty. Not long after that, the intoxicating effects of alcohol began reaching his head.

Hiccuping periodically, the Green Thunder dragged himself upstairs. He was feeling very dizzy, but in an euphoric way. He felt very peaceful and happy, but everything was unclear to him. Every time he hiccuped, he would unintentionally let out a giggle, as if it was amusing.

He stumbled into the bedroom, hanging on to the door frame to keep his wobbly legs from going out. He looked around and saw Mario sleeping in his bed. "Wh-What do we...have here?" Mr. L asked himself in a slurred voice. "Goldilocks is...s-sleeping in my bed...!"

Walking over uneasily, he took a seat at the edge of the bed and looked better at Mario. The little wolf was sleeping peacefully curled up and he had his thumb in his mouth. He was in the REM stage, so there was occasional twitching in his body, especially in his fluffy ears. "He is such a cutie, especially when he sleeps," Mr. L thought. His gloved hand slowly reached out and softly stroked Mario's cheek. Said one sighed pleasantly and continued sleeping, his eyelids fluttering a little.

Mr. L's silver eyes glanced down at Mario's lips. Soft and silky, with a shade of pale rose. Untarnished by the lips of others.

The Green Thunder knew that Mario must have kissed a few girls when he was younger, no doubt about that. He could be a real ladies' man when he wanted to be. But in his wolfie form, only Peach had kissed him, and that was only for saying thank you. Not one of her pecks was meant for love.

No one had given Mario a real kiss of love.

As he thought about this, Mr. L felt himself lowering onto Mario's body, sitting on top of him. His lips puckered out a little and settled onto the little wolf's.

The kiss was light and only lasted three seconds, but to Mr. L, it was like magic. It overwhelmed him with warm passion and left him wanting more. Without thinking about it, Mr. L kicked off his grey boots and removed his belt. They were bothersome to him now and he did not want to upset this moment with them. He thought about removing his shirt or not, since it had those brass buttons on it, but in the end, he pulled it over his head and set it next to the other discarded articles of clothing.

Mr. L sat back over the little wolf and kissed him once more. But this time, it seemed even more powerful than the last, because he felt completely subdued in passion. His face began to burn a bright red blush as his hands slipped themselves under Mario's back and brought him closer to the black-clad figure, in a sort of hugging position. Mr. L knew that Mario was a pretty light sleeper, but he was willing to risk this movement.

However, the little wolf remained asleep, which was a little odd. But Mr. L didn't care about it at this moment. All that mattered was the magical sense of the kiss.

As he continued holding Mario, Mr. L soon realized that something was wrong. The little wolf's clothes were scratchy and bothersome to him. With them on, Mr. L couldn't feel Mario's satin-smooth skin that glowed like a pearl. Though he knew this was too a risky move, he slipped his gloved hands under Mario's shirt at the back and slowly started to remove it.

The little wolf let out a sleepy sigh, but his eyes stayed closed.

Seeing this as a green light, Mr. L proceeded to take Mario's red long-sleeved shirt off completely and set it carefully among the other discarded clothing. He also took off his gloves, as he did not want them on anymore. As soon as his hands touched the surface of Mario's skin, Mr. L couldn't help but gasp. It was so smooth and perfect. It was delightfully warm, too, unlike his own cold, pale fingers. He kept running his hands all over the skin, and each time had a different reaction. The skin was too perfectly suave. Not the slightest hint of blemishes or scars to be seen or felt.

The Green Thunder felt his lips move from Mario's own to his shoulders and chest. He gently kissed the skin, shuddering at the pleasurable feeling it left him. It was like rubbing a soft kitty's belly, but way better, as this kitty wouldn't bite.

Mr. L felt himself lowering on top of Mario's sleeping body again. His hips bucked once automatically in anticipation, but then he stopped. The rational side of Mr. L tried to remind him that Mario was not a toy to play with, but the alcohol was clouding up his mind too much, twisting up his thoughts radically. All he could register at this moment was how badly he wanted Mario's pants removed.

With this one thought, the Green Thunder sat up a little and started to tug at the hem of the blue pants. This made the little wolf automatically stir, but his eyes only opened halfway before he closed them again and fell asleep again.

In a matter of seconds, Mario's pants joined his shirt at the bottom of the bed.

Mr. L continued nuzzling Mario's body, feeling pretty euphoric. He couldn't believe that this perfect body of satin was all his. His fingers were cold, but his face was a red blush of fire. He felt it burn as he placed his face against Mario's skin, savoring the feeling as it were a tangible thing he could keep locked away in a jar.

Blinded by lust, Mr. L's hands automatically began reaching for Mario's boxers. All this clothing was disturbing him greatly and was ruining everything. They had to be removed.

However, as soon as his cold fingers started to tug at the waistband, the little wolf rose from his slumber and opened his blue eyes. He was surprised at feeling this heavy weight pinning him down, leaving him practically motionless.

Looking up, Mario glanced at Mr. L, who did not notice him, being quite preoccupied. "L? Wh-What are you doing...?" he asked sleepily, rubbing his eyes. "Why are you on top of...?"

Mario's voice trailed off with shock as he looked down. His clothing had been reduced to only his boxers, which Mr. L was trying to remove. The Green Thunder wasn't wearing anything but his pants and face mask.

"What are you doing?!" he cried out again, much louder this time. Immediately, blood began rushing to his face, leaving his cheeks marked with a red blush.

Dazed by love and clouded by alcohol, Mr. L stopped tugging at Mario's boxers enough to respond to his question. "I-I'm gonna make you...all mine!" he slurred happily.

"No, s-stop it, please!" the little wolf cried out. He tried desperately to pull up his boxers, but the Green Thunder's grip was stronger than iron. Slow and clumsy, yes, but very strong nonetheless. Even with Mario pulling madly, Mr. L still managed to remove the boxers with ease. He flung them towards the growing pile of discarded clothing.

Mario cried out in embarrassment and shock as his tail automatically swung itself up between his legs to cover himself. He felt hot tears spring into his eyes as the blush on his face grew redder. "Don't, p-please...!" he whimpered.

Mr. L laughed. "D'aww, you look s-so cute...when you blush all red!" His lustful eyes danced up and down Mario's body. "And even more...wh-when you're wearing your b-birthday suit!"

Mario wanted so badly to jump up and run away, but he was pinned down by Mr. L's weight. Running away would be deemed impossible.

"How about we have...a 'lil fun tonight, huh?" the Green Thunder asked seductively as his hand reached up to pull Mario's tail aside.

"No, no, please!" Mario begged. His body was shaking in fright and the tears were now falling freely down his eyes.

His begging suddenly grew into a pained scream as Mr. L drove into him. The pain was sharp and explosive, and it burned like wildfire all along his lower midsection.

"Oh, baby...you're bleeding!" Mr. L noted in a somewhat laughing tone, his silver eyes looking down. "This must be your first time, huh?"

Mario didn't know what the Green Thunder was talking about. All he could register was the unbearable pain that racked his body. He kept letting out pained cries as Mr. L continued driving into him, each time hurting more than the last. He saw bright flashes of red and white dancing along the edge of his vision.

The night continued with painful cries and satisfied laughter that echoed softly through the forest.


	2. Chapter 2

White morning sunlight poured in through the glass windows, illuminating the room.

Mario's eyelids slowly fluttered open, feeling the sunlight on his face. He blinked rapidly for a few seconds, the light hurting his eyes a little and throwing his vision out of focus.

As his eyesight cleared up, the little wolf glanced around the room. He recognized that this was Mr. L's room; he saw the two guitars resting on their stands. But what was he doing here?

Looking down, Mario's eyes grew wide at seeing dried blood and some other substance on the white bedsheets. He saw that he wasn't wearing any clothing at all, and this horrified him. His shock grew even more when he saw more blood on his belly and upper thighs. What on earth had happened?!

When Mario turned and saw Mr. L sleeping next to him, also in his full glory, the awful memories of last night came rushing back to him, as well as the terrible pain that coursed like blood in his veins. A throbbing headache hit him, and his arms and back were sore, but nothing compared to the flaming pain that took over the area between his waist and knees.

There were no conscious thoughts in his mind, but something urged the little wolf to get out of there. Things would not be pretty if he stayed when Mr. L awoke.

Motivated by this, Mario forced his body to turn to the other way, towards the edge of the bed. The pain and his stiff joints made it difficult to move much. He managed to swing his aching legs over the edge, then he eased himself down onto the floor as best as he could. Unfortunately, as he was lowering himself, his arms wobbled and lost their momentum, and he crashed down hard right on his tail.

He let out a loud cry, then immediately stopped himself, clamping a hand over his mouth. He couldn't burst into tears now; it would definitely wake up Mr. L. And he knew how the Green Thunder acted when he was startled from his slumber.

Though the pain was unbelievably intense (as his tail was extremely sensitive), Mario managed to keep his mouth shut. The tears slipped down his face, but he made no more sounds. Getting out of here would only be accomplished with quiet.

His eyes darting about, Mario found his clothes in a pile on the opposite side of the bed, along with those of the Green Thunder. He knew walking was impossible at the moment, so he rolled over onto his belly and tried to crawl/drag himself over to the clothing pile. It seemed as though it took hours, but in reality it was only a couple of minutes. As soon as his hand came into contact with his clothes, he grabbed them and pulled them towards him.

With all this pain and stiffness in his body, it took slightly longer than normal for him for put his clothes on. But in the end, he was completely dressed.

Now here was the hard part: standing up and walking. Mario awkwardly adjusted his body in more or less a sitting position, one that his lower midsection would allow. Taking deep breaths, he took hold of the bed with one hand and the dresser opposite him with the other and heaved himself up.

Immediately, his legs lost their footing and started to give out, but Mario clung for dear life to the dresser with both hands. His hands gripped the wooden surface tightly as he tried to get his wobbly legs straightened.

When he felt that he had gained enough momentum, he slowly let go of the dresser and stood up straight, using his arms to balance himself. His legs were still shaky, but at least he wasn't crashing to the floor. However, all this was making his head spin with dizziness. He had to get out of here before it became too much to bear again.

Clinging to the dresser again for added security, Mario cautiously took a step, being very careful when putting weight on his leg.

It seemed to go well, as he did not lose his balance. The little wolf loosened his grip on the dresser and tried walking more. More success!

Now that his legs were getting used to supporting his weight, walking was deemed easier. But carelessness he avoided. He didn't trust his legs enough to go prancing about like nothing. Slow and steady would get him out of here.

* * *

It took Mario nearly all morning to stiffly walk from Mr. L's house in the middle of the forest to the castle. Uneven terrain and uprooted trees caused him to stumble and trip a lot. But he kept going, motivated by that one urge to continue. Once he reached the castle, he would be alright.

However, another reason why it took so long was because his mind was plagued by the haunting memories of last night. He kept hearing Mr. L's maniacal laughter and his own cries to stop, that it hurt, _please_ _stop it!_

_No, Mario, I won't! This is much too fun for me! Why don't you ease up and enjoy yourself?_

_I can't, it h-hurts...! _

_That's because it's your first time. It's supposed to hurt. Just hush up and have fun! This is a night you'll never forget, my baby!_

This made the pain return in throbbing pulses, so he tried his best to banish the memories from his mind and kept going. Forget about everything that happened.

* * *

Mario opened the castle doors, exhausted from his long journey back.

Immediately, some Toads noticed him. "Mario!" one of them called. "Luigi's been looking all over the place for you! You didn't appear last night, so he went all frantic over you!"

This information didn't manage to sink into the little wolf's head; he felt like he was getting another headache from all the Toad's yelling. "J-Just tell him that I-I'm back, okay?" he said softly, holding his hand up to his head. "I-I need some rest..." Ignoring the Toad's next response, he turned and made his way up the stairs, feeling the dizziness come back.

When he reached his room, Mario headed straight for the shower. He felt dirty with all this dried blood (and the other substance) covering his body. Plus, he thought it might be a way to wash away all these bad memories that kept invading his mind.

When he was thoroughly showered and dressed, the little wolf felt refreshed, but still dreadfully tired. He went over to his bed and barely had time to lie down on the covers before fatigue overcame him and he fell asleep.

* * *

"Mario?"

The little wolf heard this voice coming through the realm of his dreams. It sounded very familiar...

"Mario, wake up..."

It sounded so much like him...like Luigi's voice...

Luigi!

Mario's eyes flew open into the afternoon light. He took a moment to let his eyes adjust to this new environment, then he glanced up into the green and blue haze that must be Luigi.

"Bro, thank goodness you're alright!" Luigi said before hugging him tightly. "You went missing all of a sudden, and you had me worried sick!"

"S-Sorry, Weegee..." Mario said softly, his voice breaking. "I was in the F-Field...and...I must have fallen asleep there." He didn't want to tell Luigi about what had really happened last night. It would drive him up the wall.

Luigi was quiet for a few seconds, then he looked up, looking noticeably cheerier. "Well, it's a good thing you made it home safely," he said, ruffling Mario's hair gently. "I would have gone up the wall if anything bad had happened to you."


	3. Chapter 3

A week later, Luigi couldn't help but notice that his brother might be coming down with some kind of illness. His appetite had reduced to nothing, he slept a lot, but was still tired when he woke up, and when Luigi did force him to eat something, it would come back up later. Around the sixth or seventh day, Mario also began complaining of an upset stomach and a fever. This last one worried Luigi a lot, because whenever the little wolf had a fever, it would be a severe one; his temperature would rise to a burning 104.3° F.

Though Mario was deathly afraid of doctors, Luigi made an appointment with Dr. Toadley nonetheless. If this illness proved to be grave, he didn't want to take any chances.

* * *

"Luigi? You and Mario are next," the nurse at the clinic called out, checking off something in her pink binder.

Luigi nodded and helped Mario up. The elder sibling's stomach was bothering him so much now that it was hard for him to sit or stand, and no amount of medicine could settle it. He also had his blankie wrapped around him, as he had also gotten a chill the night before and would not leave the house without it. With his blankie, he felt more secure about going to the scary doctor's office.

The two walked into the doctor's room, dimly lit as always. Various decorations danced among the walls, and the famed crystal ball sat in the middle. Dr. Toadley himself sat in front of it, facing the wall, so his back was turned to Mario and Luigi.

"What predicament has befallen you?" the doctor asked, getting down to business.

Luigi spoke for his brother, who was hiding behind him in fear. "I-It's Mario, Dr. Toadley. A week ago, he lost his appetite completely and whatever food he does manage to eat comes back up later. He's become very tired and he can't rest, no matter what he sleeps. And a few days ago, he came down with an upset stomach and a high fever. I-I don't know what type of illness he might have, but maybe you might know?"

Dr. Toadley sat in silence as he thought about Luigi's words. Then he turned around in his seat, so that he was now facing the two siblings. "Does Mario have a serious ailment? Indeed he does," he said finally. "But is all of this from an illness? It seems highly unlikely."

"What do you mean?" Luigi asked.

"I hear this dilemma coming from female Toads all the time, but have I heard this from a male Toad? Never," the doctor continued. "However, it could be possible for male humans. The fever, restlessness, loss of appetite and nausea could be side effects to what is really ailing Mario. I have a few suspicions about his current condition, but will I have more meaningful answers after I perform a few tests? Yes, hopefully."

Luigi wasn't totally sure why the doctor would bother to mention female Toads, if this was Mario they were talking about, but he figured it'd be best to keep his questions to himself for now.

The doctor turned to the little wolf. "Could you come here, Mario?" he asked. "And leave your blanket there, you won't need it for this."

His heart began to beat faster automatically, but Mario came out from hiding and cautiously made his way up, handing his blankie to his green-clad sibling.

Dr. Toadley stood up and walked him to the bathroom. Before opening the door, he held up a small circular container with a blue lid on it and gave it to Mario. Luigi couldn't hear what the doctor was saying, but he could see very well the embarrassed blush on his brother's face. Then Mario quickly slipped inside the bathroom, shutting the door. Then the doctor calmly walked back to Luigi and sat back down at his original spot.

"What did you ask him?" Luigi asked, out of spite.

Dr. Toadley did not mind the question. "I simply asked him for a urine sample," he answered.

"...And why would you ask him for that?" Luigi asked again, confused.

"One of my three suspicions is far greater than the rest. That suspicion includes a certain hormone called human chorionic gonadotropin, or abbreviated hCG. If Mario's sample contains this hormone, will I have a better result for this suspicion? I will."

Luigi nodded, though he had no idea what the hCG hormone was.

"Actually, is there more than one way to find the hormone? There is," the Toad admitted. "But I doubt Mario would want to do that, as it would require a syringe and blood from his veins."

As if on cue, the little wolf came out, holding the container behind his back. His face was a bright red as he discreetly handed it to the doctor, then rushed back to his seat beside Luigi.

"Thank you, Mario," Dr. Toadley said brightly. He took the sample and inserted it into a type of compartment that was connected to the crystal ball. "Now, let's see if hCG is present in here," he said as he began to work the crystal ball. But before he did, he turned to Luigi. "I apologize in advance," he said. "For the sake of Mario's privacy, you will not be able to view what is inside the crystal ball. It's not you, it is a standard procedure I must follow whenever there is another person along with the patient."

Luigi nodded respectfully, although he secretly wished he knew what was being shown in that crystal ball.

After a few minutes of staring into a seemingly white crystal ball, Dr. Toadley's eyes widened. "Oh my Stars..." he breathed. He waved his hands and the crystal ball dimmed to its dormant state and looked up at the two. "Is there a significant amount of human chorionic gonadotropin in Mario's sample? There is. I'm actually stunned at the percentage."

"But what does it mean? What's so important by this human chronic whatever?" Luigi asked.

"Does it mean that something that seemed impossible has happened? It has," Dr. Toadley replied, his tone sounding awed. He stood up and cleared his throat, ready to give the prognosis. "It has come to my attention...that Mario is pregnant."


	4. Chapter 4

"_WHAT?!_" the two brothers cried in shocked unison.

"Can I believe it? I cannot. But it is true. All of these symptoms are merely side effects that have been caused by hCG. The fever, however, might have been caused because Mario's immune system might have mistaken the hormone for a virus and tried to repel it. But, as it turns out, it couldn't."

Luigi was still shocked. "But how is it possible?" he cried. "Men aren't able to get pregnant!"

"...In your world," Dr. Toadley said. "Here in the Mushroom Kingdom, do human males actually have a chance of getting pregnant? Yes, though some are barren. Every human baby boy that is born here inhales the reproductive spores in the air that are considered the Toads' version of hCG. Do not worry, it is not poisonous or anything. Is it just another type of pollen in the air? Yes, considerably. Male Toads can't really get pregnant because their bodies have a type of natural immunity to it. Plus, they are the ones who give off the spores, so they won't get infected from their own virus. Since you and Mario were born here, both of you inhaled the spores when you took your first breaths. But, are the baby boys who get terribly sick in their first few days of life the ones who turn out to be barren? Indeed they are. And as I remember, Luigi, you were the one who got sick when you were a few days old. Your body developed an antibody that fought off the spores, so you are typically barren. But Mario never got ill as an infant, so the spores have bonded within his bloodstream."

"So, that means Mario could have gotten pregnant whenever?" Luigi asked, feeling mildly horrified.

"No. Had Mario remained a virgin all his life, the spores would have never activated," Dr. Toadley answered. "Do the spores in the blood act as a substitute for female ova? Yes, they do. The spores travel all around the body, but most lie dormant in the reproductive organs, awaiting fertilization. But men who have these spores do not have menstruation cycles because there is no actual ovum in the body. It is only a mere substitute."

Something about Dr. Toadley's words unnerved Luigi greatly. "Wait," he said. "You said that if Mario had stayed a virgin, the spores would have never found a reason to make a baby, right?"

"Is that correct? It is," Dr. Toadley responded.

Luigi cast one uneasy look at Mario before looking back at the doctor. "So, this means that Mario recently _did it_ with someone?"

"Affirmative," the doctor said. "Like female ova, it needs a male sperm cell to be fertilized. Females, of course, do not have these cells, so intercourse with a woman would have no effect whatsoever. Would a male have to have intercourse with Mario in order to stimulate the spores? Yes, he would."

Luigi could only look at the little wolf with pure disdain now, who only looked back at him in confusion.

Dr. Toadley's cheeks reddened a bit as he realized what he just said. "Oh..."

Luigi didn't know whenever to be shocked or angry. He stood up out of spite. "You had the nerve to sleep with a man?!" he asked Mario incredulously, not realizing that his voice was rising. "How could you do something like that!"

"Wh-What...?" Mario replied in a timid voice, not sure what Luigi was talking about.

"Don't play dumb with me, Bro! Pregnancy does _not_ happen out of the blue!" Luigi shouted, anger clearly shown in his eyes. "Who did you do it with?"

"Do what?" Mario asked again, his voice less audible than before. His body began to tremble.

"You answer me this instant, Mario! Who in the hell were you screwing with?!" Luigi yelled at him. In his fury, his hand lashed out and slapped his brother hard across the face. The force of the blow knocked Mario from his chair, sending him crashing to the floor.

"Hey!" Dr. Toadley called as he stood up as well.

Luigi paid no attention to him. All his anger was directed at Mario. "Are you deaf? Answer me _right now!_"

"I-I, um..." was all that the little wolf could whimper. His eyes were quickly welling up with tears from the sting of Luigi's slap and the ferocity of his words. His bladder (which had been feeling sensitive lately) instantly released and he wet his pants, but he was so scared he didn't even notice.

Luigi was tired of Mario's constant stuttering. "_I-I-I -_ Speak the hell up, Mario! Do not try to play games with me! Who did you have the damn nerve to sleep with?!" he yelled.

"I-I don't know wh-what you're talking about...!" Mario cried. He didn't know what his brother meant by _sleep with_. He had never heard this term before.

Despite Dr. Toadley's attempts to hold him back, Luigi grabbed the elder sibling by the collar of his shirt and pulled him up. "If you don't tell me who you've been screwing with, so help me, you are not my brother anymore!" he thundered.

The severity of these last words were so great that Mario's heart shattered and he started to cry loudly.

"LUIGI! You stop this NOW!" Dr. Toadley yelled as he used up all his strength and jerked Luigi back. This sudden movement made the green-clad sibling drop Mario, who fell to the floor, still wailing hopelessly. The dark thundercloud instantly appeared over his head.

"Luigi, I will not tolerate this kind of outlandish behavior!" the doctor said severly. "I respect that you are not pleased with Mario's unexpected pregnancy, but striking him and threatening to disown him is downright brutal!"

"He gave his virginity to a man, Toadley," Luigi hissed, still wanted to lash out at the little wolf. "And now he's pregnant because of it. No self-respecting brother of mine will do that. Get him out of my sight!"

Hearing these words, Mario immediately got up, still crying, and ran out of the room and the clinic, not looking back. Even if Luigi didn't want him as a brother anymore, Mario would still love and respect him, even if it means getting out of his sight.

* * *

Luigi wanted to chase after him and confront him again, but Dr. Toadley kept him back. "Do not approach him in your anger, Luigi!" he shouted. "Do we take pregnancies here very seriously? Yes we do. They can be life-threatening to our female Toads, as their bodies do not have such strong structures. Your brother is, of course, male, but gender does not matter. If you harm Mario in a way that injures or kills the embryo, you can be charged or jailed for it!"

Luigi was too caught up in his anger to let that information sink in. "I don't care if that baby died inside him, he'd deserve it!"

Dr. Toadley knew that talking was not going to work with this amount of fury. His hand reached up and swiftly struck Luigi across the face. Said one stopped yelling, stunned at the blow.

The doctor jerked the green-clad sibling's chin towards him. "Listen to yourself. You're wishing for the death of your own brother. Are male pregnancies much harder than female ones? Yes, they are. Men are not technically built to have children, so if Mario's embryo dies, it will be highly likely that Mario will die as well. And since his body is much weaker in his wolf form, the stakes are even higher. There is a chance that he might not even survive the three months of pregnancy."

This information definitely sunk into Luigi, who was not blinded by rage now. He opened his mouth, but no sound was emitted from his lips.

Dr. Toadley was glad that Luigi was not acting like a complete lunatic right now, but he still didn't trust him. He led Luigi to the other room in the clinic, which was the room where all the other patients were usually situated. However, this room was empty at the moment. "Will I put you in here for a few hours of observation? I most certainly will. I must see whenever your brutal rage has completely lifted before you can see your brother again. I will not risk any chance of you harming Mario or his embryo."

Before Luigi could react to all this, Dr. Toadley opened the door and pushed Luigi inside. He quickly shut the doors and locked them securely. Then he pressed a button on the keypad next to the doors, and a small intercom iside Luigi's room turned on. "Are you able to do anything you wish here? You are. Talk to yourself, vent some more, sleep a few hours, whatever suits you. But you will not be released until my crystal ball says that your anger has truly receded. I know you are very upset by these news, but you must learn to respect it now. Remember, the person who got Mario pregnant is not important anymore. What is important now is making sure that Mario and the unborn child are well. Anything that goes wrong could very well send the two to their deaths."


	5. Chapter 5

Of course Luigi had gotten mad that Dr. Toadley had locked him in without prior warning, so he stomped around the room for the first fifteen minutes or so, fuming angrily. Fifteen minutes quickly turned into thirty, an hour, two hours. He kicked some chairs around and pounded on the doors for a while, but soon stopped when his hands and feet began aching too much to bear.

Afterward, he had gotten tired of walking and flopped down on one of those hospital beds that had been pushed to the far side of the room. He closed his eyes for almost ten minutes, but then he opened them. He could not rest. There was too much on his mind.

_I just can't believe that Mario would go and sleep with a man like that,_ he thought to himself. _How could he disgrace himself by doing such a thing? _That destructive anger began to rise in him again, but then he remembered Toadley's words and managed to lower his temper a little after taking a few deep breaths. _I-I mean, Mario has more sense than that, right? He may have the mind of a child, but I'm sure he knows not to sleep with those nasty creepers that only want his body. __But why would he even do it in the first place?_ _Is he more simpleminded than I thought he was?_

Luigi turned and fluffed up the pillow a bit before he continued. _Mario's so naive in his given state that he probably doesn't even know how the whole 'thing' works...No one ever talked to him about it, why would they?_

He suddenly sat up as he thought of something that had managed to slip his mind. In all his blind fury hours earlier, he had never paid attention to Mario's frightened responses. He recalled that Mario had shown no knowledge whatsoever to Luigi's angry words.

_Do what?_

_I-I don't know wh-what you're talking about...!_

He never knew what "doing it" actually meant.

What if Mario had never planned to get pregnant in the first place?

What if he had been...violated?

"Oh, my goodness..." Luigi lamented as he realized what he had done. All the destructive anger came rushing back, but this time, it was directed at himself.

"_Aaargh!_" Luigi cried out as he jumped up from the bed. He started pacing around the room, his hands curled into tight fists. Out of spite, he lashed out and pounded the wall again.

"How could I have been so _stupid?!_" he yelled at himself. "Stupid, stupid idiot! I hit him in the face and I said I would disown him as a brother...! What the _friggin' hell_ was I thinking?!" An angry tear slipped down his face as he continued ranting. "If anything, he should disown _me!_"

Luigi's anger soon turned to deep regret as he slid down to the floor, his legs unable to support his weight anymore. All these sudden strong emoions were taking his toll on him. His knees were pulled up to his chest as he buried his face in his hands. "Oh, Mario, what have I done to you..." he lamented. "Please forgive me..."

After what seemed to be hours (but was only a couple of minutes), Luigi pulled himself together and heaved himself up, his legs weak and his eyes red and teary. He sniffled as he made his way to the door. Pounding on it again with both hands, he called out, "Let me out! I have to see my brother!"

* * *

Mario didn't know where to run at first. Mr. L's home seemed too risky at the moment, the Field of Paper Flowers was too close to the forest and it seemed uninviting, and the brothers' home was no longer available, since Luigi didn't want him as a brother anymore.

As he ran through the streets of Toad Town, he caught sight of Peach's Castle, standing brightly among the trees. Would he be accepted there?

Without any further hesitation, Mario made a left and went towards the pink-and-magenta castle. It was the last place he could go.

* * *

Bursting through the doors without so much as a greeting to the other Toads, the little wolf made a straight beeline for the stairs. He didn't want to face anyone right now. Surely, the news had already spread to this pink domain. All those eyes watching him, they must already know...

They must already know how he disgraced his brother and was now disowned.

_You had the nerve to sleep with a man?!_

_Do not try to play games with me! Who did you have the damn nerve to sleep with?!_

_If you don't tell me who you've been screwing with, so help me, you are not my brother anymore!_

All these thoughts began to haunt Mario's mind again. With each step up the stairs, he felt more dreadful than before.

"I am not Luigi's brother..."

Tears filled his eyes as he climbed up the last step. He started to make a right to head to his room-

-And walked right into Peach.

"Oops, sorry about that!" the princess apologized. "I didn't see you there-"

Her voice trailed off as she saw who she had bumped into. "Mario? Honey, what's wrong?" she asked gently, seeing the stillborn tears in his eyes.

Mario tried to speak, but his throat kept choking up too much, cutting off his words.

Peach crouched down a little so she could be at his level. As she did, however, she caught sight of the wet spot on his pants. "Oh, goodness...!" she said, out of shock.

Mario followed her gaze down and noticed his wet pants for the first time. His cheeks flamed red as he started to cry, utterly embarrassed.

Peach gasped and stood back up. "Oh, no, honey, it's okay!" she tried to reassure him. "Please, n-no crying, it'll be okay!"

Mario showed no signs of calming down, so Peach decided to take matters into her own hands. Taking his hand gently, the princess led him to his room, closing the door so no prying eyes would see. She sat him down on the bed, then rifled through his drawers for some new underclothes and pants.

"Here you go, sweetie, you can go change in the bathroom," she said gently to him, holding out the clothes.

Mario took the clothes in his shaky hands, whispered a barely audible "thank you", then disappeared into the bathroom.

Peach looked at the closed door anxiously. Something more serious had happened to Mario than just the wet pants, she knew it. If he had been unable to at least stop sobbing so fretfully, then he was really shook up about something.

A few rapid thoughts coursed through her mind as Peach wondered what the cause was. Was someone badly injured? Did he witness someone attack his precious flowers or butterflies? What if someone dear to him had passed away, Heaven forbid?

She didn't have any more time to dwell on the subject because at that moment, the white door opened and Mario came out.

There was nothing in his hands, so Peach guessed that there was some sort of hamper in the bathroom. His crying wasn't as strong as it was before, but the tears still ran down his face.

"Mario, what's wrong? Did something happen?" Peach tried asking again.

The little wolf did not answer at first. He needed to sit down before his legs gave out again, as they were wobbly. He made his way to the bed and sat down, wincing in pain as he did.

Peach followed his suit and sat down next to him. She was about to repeat her question, but then he suddenly answered. "I-It's Luigi..."

"Did something happen to him?" she asked, feeling concern.

Mario shook his head as he wiped away a fresh round of tears from his eyes. "I...I-I'm not...his brother a-anymore..."

"What do you mean?" Peach said, surprised at his answer.

Mario's throat choked up again before he replied. "H-He said...he doesn't w-want me as a...b-brother..."

"Why on earth would he say that?!" the princess cried, shocked. Mario and Luigi were closer than two peas in a pod, how could Luigi not want him as a brother?

"L-Luigi was r-really mad...at me...really mad. H-He said he doesn't w-want me as a brother a-anymore because...I'm pregnant."


	6. Chapter 6

Mario's response was so unexpected that Peach couldn't resist the urge to laugh a little. Obviously, this had to be some kind of prank that the brothers were playing on her. Men weren't able to get pregnant! "O-Oh, Mario...you got me there for a second," she said, catching her breath. "That's a good joke right there. I didn't know that you could act like that-"

She stopped talking suddenly when she saw the look of dismay in Mario's eyes. There was no joking laugh coming from him.

"Oh...y-you're serious?" she asked quietly, her eyes widening.

The little wolf nodded mutely, hanging his head in shame.

"Oh my goodness, I am so sorry," the princess apologized, her cheeks turning pink. "I thought you were just playing..."

Mario simply nodded, keeping his head down. He knew she was sincere; male pregnancy seemed like a big joke, too. But he knew it had to be true.

Peach's gaze lowered to Mario's belly, which looked as normal as ever. She just couldn't understand how a baby could be growing inside him. But even then, she was very much intrigued by this.

Without thinking, her hand began to reach towards his belly. She knew she wouldn't be able to feel anything at this stage, but she still wanted to see nonetheless.

Mario saw her hand and his eyes widened in confusion.

"Oh, s-sorry about that," Peach blushed, yanking her hand back. "I-I shouldn't have-"

"It's okay..." Mario reassured in the tiniest voice; he could somehow sense what Peach wanted. "I don't mind."

Still feeling a bit uneasy, Peach moved her hand forward again. But all that went away immediately as soon as she touched his belly. "Oh, my stars..." she whispered in awe. Mario's belly had hardened. It felt tough and swollen, though there was no visible growth.

_There was a child growing in there..._

Peach heard the little wolf inhale sharply in pain and yanked her hand back. "Oh, I'm so sorry, did I hurt you?" she asked, worried.

"A little..." Mario replied honestly, wincing. "B-But I'll be okay, really..."

As he was saying these last words, however, the princess could see the tears welling up in his eyes again. She knew he wasn't okay.

Suddenly, without warning, Mario burst out sobbing again. He turned and clung to Peach for support, which at first startled her. But then she reached out and hugged him closer to her, hoping that this might ease his pain a little. She didn't know what it was like to be disowned, but she knew how it felt to lose someone very close to you.

The two stayed like this for a while: Mario crying hopelessly, and Peach trying to comfort him.

"Shhh, it'll be okay, Mario..." she whispered gently to his ear, worried at how badly he was shaking. "Don't cry, please..."

"I-I don't have...a-anyone left...!" the little wolf cried in dismay. "Luigi...h-he's the only f-family I have! A-And now...because I-I'm pregnant...I lost him...!" He buried his head back into Peach's arm.

The princess soothingly petted his hair. "It wasn't your fault, honey," she said.

"Y-Yes, it was...!" Mario sobbed. "I-It's my fault...Luigi doesn't w-want me as a brother...! I sh-should have n-never let this happen...I'm so stupid!"

"Don't say that," Peach said in a warning tone.

Mario did not heed her words. There was no one to blame here but himself. "L-Luigi had every right...t-to disown me...!" he continued. "And he knew it."

"Mario!" Peach exclaimed.

"Wh-Why would he want...a b-brother that was s-so stupid...th-that he can't even _read?!_"

"_Enough,_ Mario! Stop it right now!" Peach shouted. She pulled the little wolf away from her and held his arms tightly in place, forcing him to look up at her in surprised fear. "I may not know how you became pregnant, but I respect that and I won't press you for answers. That's your business. But I will _not_ have you beat yourself up like this! It is not your fault for what happened with you and Luigi, despite his words. And it is NOT your fault that you cannot read. You should never consider yourself stupid for that."

Mario only looked up at her, his scared eyes red and teary.

"And don't you worry about losing Luigi as your brother. He was probably so unnerved by your pregnancy that he didn't listen to himself. But, if he truly wishes to disown you, Heaven forbid, then I will go talk to him about it to make sure. I don't want you to be haunted by uncertain thoughts."

* * *

Just then, the door flew open, and Luigi came bursting through, out of breath. "Mario, are you in here?" he called out, concerned.

As soon as he heard his brother's voice, Mario completely panicked beyond comprehension. He broke free out of Peach's grasp and dove under the bed, only his fluffy brown tail showing from beneath the covers. He very well remembered Luigi's command to _get out of his sight!_ Even though they were no longer brothers, Mario still felt the need to obey.

"Mario, wait, it's me!" Luigi tried to reassure the elder sibling. But it was of no use, as Mario kept hiding under the bed, whimpering in fear.

Seeing Luigi, Peach stood up abruptly. "What on earth is your problem?!" she shouted at him. "You belittled your brother and tried to disown him! Are you out of your mind!"

"I-I know, and it was a completely stupid thing of me to do!" Luigi tried to say, hearing his voice crack from the tension. He kept trying to look at Mario, but the princess kept blocking his view. "I was mad, and I wasn't listening to anything. I didn't mean anything I said!"

Peach did not say anything, but kept staring hard at Luigi, her arms crossed.

Luigi sighed and closed his eyes, his next words only for the little wolf. "Mario...I know what I said to you is completely unacceptable, and a thousand apologies will never be enough to undo it. But, even if you decide not to forgive me, I just wanna say that I'm very sorry. I'm sorry I hit you, and I'm sorry I accused you of deliberately sleeping with a man."

Peach's eyes widened at this last statement, but she didn't say anything. Now was not the time to make comments.

"I never should have said those things," Luigi continued. "And if the damage I've caused you is so great that you don't want me as a brother anymore, I understand." He lowered his head, his cheeks reddening with shame and regret.

All was quiet in the room until Mario slowly came out from under the bed. His teary blue eyes looked at the green-clad plumber for a few long seconds, then he ran over and hugged him tightly, surprising Luigi.

"I forgive you, Weegee!" Mario cried, starting to cry again. But this time, these tears were of joy. "I would never disown you; you're the only family I have!"

Luigi felt hot tears come to his own eyes as he hugged his brother back. "You're my family, too, Bro. And I promise I'll never say those types of things to you again. B-But if I do in the future for any reason, you just smack me upside the head and tell me to watch myself, okay?"

"I would never hurt you, but I will tell you," Mario agreed, nodding. He felt his broken heart mend again.

Peach stood by the two brothers, feeling relieved that they had made up.

While still in Luigi's arms, Mario suddenly remembered something very important. "Where's my blankie?"

* * *

Author's Note: As it is mentioned above, Wolfie Mario is deemed illiterate, but he _can_ understand a few simple words, an example being his name. Other than that, he cannot read, and he cannot write at all, despite the fact that he can draw.

Anyway, I hope you like this chapter, and thank you for the reviews I've gotten so far! :D Don't worry, the main plot should be really starting to kick in within the next few chapters.


	7. Chapter 7

Upon hearing this question, Luigi, Mario and Peach quickly headed back to Dr. Toadley's office to retrieve Mario's beloved blankie. While they were there, Peach wanted to know how Mario was able to get pregnant in the first place, so Luigi directed her to the doctor, who politely told her everything about the reproduction spores, how they acted as female ovum, and how only intercourse with a male would activate them. Though no one said a word about it, Luigi, Peach and even Dr. Toadley were wondering who the "father" of Mario's child would be.

Who activated the spores?

* * *

A few days later, Luigi woke up in his bed in the morning, the early sunlight pouring in through the green curtains in his room. He lay in bed for a while, trying to recall what he had dreamed last night: riding a Big Boo in a rodeo tournament, with lots of Dry Bones in the audience.

"Man, I have the strangest dreams..." he mumbled to himself as he climbed out of bed. He pulled his bathrobe on, still feeling sleepy, and opened the door to his room. He walked down the hall, rubbing his eyes sleepily. Seeing today's newspaper sitting on a table with a flowered vase on it, he picked it up and started to head to the bathroom, feeling that morning need to relieve himself.

As he opened the bathroom door, his eyes suddenly widened in surprise. Someone had beat him to it.

"Mario?" he asked, seeing his brother slumped on the floor, hands clutching the toilet seat. His face had a green tint to it and he looked very tired. "What happened?"

Mario was about to answer, but then he heaved and quickly turned, throwing up in the toilet bowl.

"Oh...I see," Luigi said, feeling a little awkward. He backed away as he tried to suppress the rising bile in his throat.

"S-Sorry...I've b-been here...too long..." the little wolf managed to say as he grabbed a roll of toilet paper, unraveled a long sheet, and wiped his mouth with it. "B-Belly...hurts..." He tossed the now soiled toilet paper towards a messy stack of identically soiled toilet paper that had accumulated into a large pile. "But...I-I feel much better than b-before..."

"Do you feel well enough to eat breakfast?" Luigi inquired.

* * *

About ten minutes later, the two brothers headed towards the dining hall. Mario did seem better, though he still looked a bit queasy and wobbly on his feet. But maybe eating a bit would settle this "morning sickness". Of course, Luigi had never really been around pregnant women, so he wasn't sure how to treat all this nausea.

"Hey, Toad, what's cooking up in there?" he asked the Toad that was standing by the doors, finishing up his own breakfast on his plate.

"Hey, Luigi! They're cooking up some waffles and pancakes, with strawberry jubilee and whipped cream," Toad replied. "At least, that's what I got. It may not be the healthiest breakfast, but who am I to complain? It's delicious!"

Hearing the word _strawberry jubilee _seemed to awaken something in Mario. He licked his lips hungrily and quickly dashed inside before Luigi had time to realize it.

"Whoa, looks like someone's hungry today," the Toad noted, raising an eyebrow in amusement.

"Yeah...too soon, though," Luigi said to himself, quickly following his brother inside the dining hall.

When Luigi came into the hall, however, he stopped in his tracks, surprised. He saw Mario sitting at one of the tables, eating the largest plate of waffles with strawberry jubilee he had ever seen. It seemed almost as tall as Mario himself and was teeming with strawberries and whipped cream. A crowd of Toads gathered around him, wondering whenever he'd be able to finish such a dish.

"Mario!" Luigi gasped, running towards him. "You can't finish all that!"

Mario laughed as though Luigi had just told the best joke of the century. "What are you talking about, Weegee? Of course I can finish it!" He took another bite of the strawberry-covered waffles. "I remember you being able to polish off an entire Snack Basket***** and you were just fine!"

"But you were feeling sick just fifteen minutes ago, and now you're willing to eat all this?" Luigi continued in shock. Hearing this, the Toads close to Mario immediately took a few steps back warily.

"Aww, don't you worry a thing about it, Weegee! I'll be able to finish this in no time!"

Amazingly, the little wolf kept his word, and five minutes later, the whole plate was licked clean. Everyone stared open-mouthed at Mario as he licked his sticky fingers clean and placed the silverware back on the plate neatly. "Mmm, that was delicious!" he said to himself. The he noticed everyone staring at him like he was crazy. "...What?" he asked, his cheeks reddening a bit.

* * *

It was like that all week. Mario would always be hungry ten minutes after he had eaten something, and when he did eat, it was a plate of the strangest food of choice. He still got sick every morning, but after that was done, it seemed to fade away entirely for the day, leaving him with endless hunger and bounds of energy. Once, Mario had argued with one of the chefs for a long time because the chef wouldn't let him eat some of the Superspicy Curry******. Of course, it wasn't a good idea to eat spicy foods while pregnant, but Mario didn't know this. All he knew was that he wanted some curry. Soon, the debate grew so heated that another crowd of Toads came to watch. Would Mario be able to beat the old, surly chef with the twinkle in his eye?

"No way, Mario, this is some of the really hot stuff. No one can handle its intense heat!" the chef refused.

"Come on, I can do it," Mario replied.

"No can do. If you eat this, you'll be running around the room uncontrollably, spitting out fireballs!" the chef said firmly. "What if you set something on fire?"

"I won't set anything on fire!" Mario said, sounding very offended. "I'll be super careful. Just one bite?"

"Not even a bite, I'm sorry. The princess and Toadsworth would eat me alive if I let someone eat the curry and bounce around like a maniac, spitting fire everywhere," the chef declined.

"But I want some of that curry...!"

"No, Mario, I'm sorry. I can't let you eat it," the chef said, shaking his head. "It's way too risky and dangerous."

"Then why do you even have it there in the first place?" Mario asked, raising en eyebrow.

The chef thought about it for a moment. "Well...you never know when a Smash Tournament would come up, and the players would require Superspicy Curry in their battle..." he said uneasily. "Plus, it's important for us to have every type of food available, even if we can't let most people eat it."

"That's not fair at all!" Mario cried. "You would let some giant Toad eat it, because it wouldn't bother him in the least. But you won't give it to me or another Toad my size because we _can't handle it?_"

The chef started to sweat nervously. He had never heard the little wolf speak with such vigor before. "Um...wh-when you put it that way-"

But Mario wasn't finished. "And suppose Wario came crashing in on his motorcycle and demanded a Superspicy Curry to be given to him. Would you give it to him? He's pretty big, don't you think?"

"I, um...well, you see-" the chef started, stammering.

"You would, wouldn't you?" Mario answered for him. "So that settles it, then." He turned to the crowd of Toads around them. "Do you think it's fair that the chef only gives out the curry to big, scary people because he thinks they can handle the heat?"

The crowd began to roar out answers. "No, that ain't fair at all!" a green-capped Toad called out.

"I wanted some curry myself, but he never let me!" another blue Toad with black-rimmed glasses and a mustache cried. "And I've always wanted some of it!"

"I never liked it, but I do think it is rather unfair!" a female Toad with white-and-pink shroom pigtails called out.

"I bet he only gives it to big people because he's afraid of them!" a young red-capped Toad with a beanie on his head taunted. "_Oh, here, let me give you this Superspicy Curry because I'm afraid you'll hurt me!_" he mocked.

"I-I don't do that!" the chef said, blushing a little. "I can stand my own ground, you know! And whenever any of you like it or not, I am not giving this curry to Mario!"

"Let him have the curry!" a purple-capped Toad called out.

"Better yet, let ALL OF US have some!" a female green-capped Toad replied.

"No! I'm not letting any of you have it! You're too soft and sensitive, you'll probably blow up with the heat!" the chef retaliated.

"Let us have the curry!" a few Toads started to chant. "Let us have the curry! Let us have the curry!"

"No curry for any of you!" the chef shouted back.

"_Let us have the curry! Let us have the curry! Let us have the curry!_"

"No!" the chef replied, though he knew he was losing this debate.

"_Let us have the curry! Let us have the curry! Let us have the curry!_"

The words resonated in the old, surly chef's ears until he couldn't stand it anymore. "ALRIGHT! I'LL LET YOU HAVE IT!" he yelled, covering his ears.

Mario and the crowd of Toads started to cheer, but then the chef spoke again. "But if you're gonna eat it, then all of you need to go _outside! _I ain't getting blamed if the castle is set on fire, alright?"

Minutes later, the streets of Toad Town were flooded with running, flaming Toads. As the chef had predicted, not one of them could handle it, but none of the Toads cared. They loved the taste of the curry, even as it burned their tongues and scorched their throats.

And as Mario promised, nothing was burned down.

* * *

*****= _Mario and Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story  
_******= _Super Smash Bros. Brawl_

Author's Note: As we can see, Mario starts to experience morning sickness and weird cravings, but it happens quite differently than it would for females. XD Also, we can also see that his behavior changes quite quickly, from depression to euphoria, but this is just the beginning. He'll definitely feel the real effects of pregnancy soon. *insert evil laugh here*

I hope you like it! :D


	8. Chapter 8

That debate with the chef was the last victory that Mario would have for the next few weeks. His nausea soon increased twofold, leaving him sickened and tired most of the time, and even though he craved food more than ever, the aromas would turn his stomach and make him run towards the nearest restroom. His cheery demeanor soon faded, and he was quiet and sullen, fed up from all the cramps and vomiting. His change of behavior confused all the other Toads, who knew nothing about his pregnancy. He would stay in his room for long periods of time, but all he did was pace around, as he could not sit still. He had to keep moving.

His belly showed practically nothing during the first week and a half, but Mario felt he was gaining weight. And when he stepped on the scale one night, it showed that he had indeed gained a couple of pounds. For some reason, he had freaked out about it and had rushed to inform Luigi, who had to calm him down and tell his brother that the weight gain was perfectly normal and that he would gain more in the next couple of months.

About a week later, Dr. Toadley called Luigi to come back to the office.

* * *

"What is it, Dr. Toadley?" Luigi asked.

Mario and Luigi were back in the doctor's office with Dr. Toadley. The two brothers sat opposite him in their regular seats, awaiting what he would tell them. At least, _Luigi _was, as Mario was tired and didn't really want to listen. His belly was now showing a little bump, but to anyone else, it would have only looked like the little wolf was getting seconds for dessert. It didn't look as though he was pregnant.

"Is it time for Mario's first ultrasound? It is," the doctor replied. "Since a male pregnancy only lasts for three months, each month is considered one trimester. At this time, Mario's fetus has developed more quickly than a regular fetus would at one month. Will I check to see if the fetus is developing properly? Yes, definitely."

Dr. Toadley stood up and walked back to the room that had a curtain drawn over it. "Have I talked with the hospital to lend me a transducer to complete this procedure? Indeed I have, although I did not tell them who I would perform the ultrasound on. They probably would have freaked out." He pushed aside the curtain. "Mario, would you come back here, please?"

Mario had no desire to stand up, as he knew this would cause him discomfort, but he took Luigi's outstretched hand nonetheless, who helped him stand up. Then the two walked back to the far room and went inside. In front of the ventilation system, there was a machine that sat next to a small television on a cart. Something that resembled a computer mouse was on top of the machine, next to a bottle of some gel. A bed with a type of rubber mattress sat next to it.

"Would you lie down on that bed for me and lift up your shirt, please, Mario?" the doctor said, going over to the machine and getting the bottle of gel.

Another thing Mario was reluctant to do, but he obeyed. With Luigi's help, he managed to lift himself up onto the bed and lift his shirt up, exposing his belly.

Without a moment of hesitation, Dr. Toadley quickly snapped on some gloves and opened the bottle of gel. He poured some into the palm of his gloved hand and spread the cold gel all over Mario's belly, causing him to gasp. Once he had a fine layer of gel rubbed on the little wolf's belly, the doctor turned on the television, took the computer mouse thing (Luigi later learned it was called a transducer) and placed it on Mario's belly.

A few seconds later, warped black-and-white images began to appear on the television screen. Soon, they focused, and the fetus appeared on-screen.

"Oh, my goodness..." Luigi said to himself in awe. He had expected the images to be all blurry, but they were much clearer than he thought. The fetus already looked so developed. It had all its little arms and legs, which slowly moved back and forth. He could see the tiny umbilical cord that protruded from the belly and the black dots on the head that were the fetus's eyes.

_This little being that was developing would soon be his niece or nephew..._

"Does the fetus look as though it is developing properly? Yes, it does," Dr. Toadley observed. He, too, was amazed, for he had never seen a baby grow inside a male. "It looks as though its fingers are developing at this stage." He pointed to some white dots on the screen next to the fetus's hands, then moved his hand down to the feet. "And right here, the toes are developing, too."

Luigi nodded; he could now see the tiny digits on the fetus's limbs. But while he was looking, he noticed something that almost threw him for a loop. "Uh, Dr. Toadley...is that a third leg growing right there?" he asked incredulously, pointing.

The doctor looked closely to where Luigi was pointing. "Good gracious!" he said, stepping back in shock.

"Wh-What is it?" Mario asked, looking sleepily at the image. He had closed his eyes for a moment, as his fatigue was so great. "What is that?"

"That's your baby, Mario," Luigi answered.

"My...baby?" the little wolf responded, his eyes flying open completely. He stared at the the image, speechless.

Dr. Toadley kept looking at the image on the screen. "Does that seem to be a third leg? It does not seem so," he said carefully. "While mutations are possible, this does not seem to be the case, as that extra limb does not move like the legs."

"Then what is it?" Luigi asked, feeling a bit worried.

"Sometimes, the reproductive organs of the fetus will be visible in the ultrasound, though it is difficult to tell at this stage. But that third leg you speak of is much too large to be its reproductive organs." He looked a bit closer. "That is a tail."

Both Mario and Luigi gasped. "The baby is a hybrid?" Luigi asked in surprise.

Dr. Toadley nodded. "Are you correct? You most certainly are," he replied. "Since the activation of the spores most likely happened when Mario was in his wolf form, it is possible that the fetus might inherit some of that DNA. Is this a magnificent discovery? Indeed it is! There is a chance the fetus might inherit some of the spell that Mario has, as well."

"It can do that?" Luigi asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Yes, it can. Mario's wolf form was not 'born', but when he first appeared, the spell was already in effect. The fetus might be born with the spell already in effect, too."

Luigi nodded, then thought of something else. "What about those inner powers you once said Mario had? Would those be inherited by the baby?"

"Do I know that? No, I don't. But I wouldn't disregard it. Male pregnancies are very different than female ones, I told you. Who knows, the baby might be born looking like an exact copy of Mario or an exact copy of the father, or it might look like neither of them at all. And it might be born with all of Mario's powers, or none of them at all. But do not worry. Will we have an answer to these questions as soon as the child is born? Indeed we will."

* * *

After Dr. Toadley had finished the ultrasound and everything had been cleaned up, the three headed back to the main room.

"Now that we are heading into a new trimester, things should change for you, Mario," the doctor explained. "I cannot exactly say when, but the next few weeks should be better than it is now. Morning sickness should fade away, your appetite should return, and you should have more energy. But don't get carried away, since now that the fetus is growing rapidly, you'll probably get cramps in your legs and back. As for the fetus, it may start to kick within the next few weeks. Don't get scared if you feel something move inside you."

Mario nodded. Seeing his baby on the screen had snapped him awake for a while, but soon fatigue returned and he was tired again. The good thing was that Luigi was listening, as he wanted to make his brother's pregnancy as comfortable as possible.

"Do I have something to ask you? Yes, I do," the doctor said, organizing some papers on his desk. "I cannot tell you now, but when the time comes, would you like to know the gender of the baby? It's important that I ask you this since some people would rather be surprised."

Luigi looked at Mario for an answer, who said something to him in in Italian. Then he turned back to the doctor. "No, make it a surprise," he said. He secretly wanted to know, but he would support his brother's decision. Gender wouldn't matter much, anyway. As long as the baby was healthy, it would be alright.

"Surprise it is, then," Dr. Toadley said, making a note in his clipboard. Then he turned to Mario. "If you don't mind me asking you, would you please wait out in the waiting room? There is something I must inform Luigi of privately."

"Okay then," Mario said as he turned and walked out of the room. He'd be better off there; at least there were chairs to sit in.

"What is it?" Luigi asked as soon as his brother was out of earshot.

"Have I thought of something that might jeopardize this whole event? Yes, regrettably," Dr. Toadley remarked. "If the child _is_ born with Mario's powers, then there is a chance the child might be in danger."

"Wh-What do you mean? The baby might get sick?" Luigi said, feeling worried as he remembered what would happen if the fetus died inside Mario.

"No, no. The baby will most likely be fine. This is about Bowser."

"Bowser?" the green-clad sibling said, raising an eyebrow.

"Precisely. Bowser hasn't attacked the kingdom to kidnap the princess in a good while, which is almost always a sign he will soon. And Mario will have no chance of fighting him in his condition. Will the consequences be devastating if Bowser figures out that Mario is pregnant? There can be no doubt it will. And if the baby is born with Mario's powers and Bowser knows about it, there can be no doubt that Bowser would kidnap the child to manipulate its raw, untamed powers. He would certainly have the power to crush us all and take over the whole kingdom."

"Oh my Stars..." Luigi breathed in a shocked tone.

"This is why we must keep both Mario and Peach safe," Dr. Toadley continued. "If Peach gets kidnapped and Mario tries to help her, Bowser might harm him or the fetus. And if Bowser figures out about the child, he might kidnap Mario himself."

"I can take on Bowser," Luigi remarked, rolling his hands into fists.

"I have every confidence you can," Dr. Toadley acknowledged. "But we cannot let it come down to that, as it is very risky. I don't wish to put you in danger as well, Luigi. You and Mario always came injured from those battles in the past. So, we must put up a secure room somewhere, whether it be in the castle, your home, anywhere, where both Mario and Peach can escape to safety, should Bowser invade."

"Do we have to tell everyone that Mario's pregnant?" Luigi asked.

"Not at this moment, it is too soon. When his belly gets larger, will everyone guess it? Probably. But we cannot let Bowser know. And that scoundrel Magikoopa of his, Kamek, he might be able to track the source of power if the baby inherits it. We have to keep Mario off their radar."

"Got it," Luigi nodded.


	9. Chapter 9

Just as Dr. Toadley had said, the next few days turned out to be better than the last. Mario's morning sickness faded away eventually, though he was careful when approaching food at first. All the aching cramps he had gotten in his belly soon went away, but was soon met with new ones in his legs and lower back. And for the first time in a few weeks, he actually felt like getting out of his room and doing something.

The only problem with that was the fact that his belly was really starting to show. Whenever he walked down the halls, he would get odd looks from the rest of the Toads. Some simply looked and didn't give it a second thought, but others were pushy and kept asking him why he was getting rounder. One of them even went so far as to accuse him of having an eating disorder.

"You're not bulimic, are you?" the Toad had asked. "Because I saw how you would eat a lot one minute and then throw it up the next. I think you should see a doctor about that, my daughter once had that and it was awful and she had to be hospitalized and she had needles stuck in her arms and it took a long time for her to get better and..."

Mario didn't know what being a bulimic meant, but when he heard the part about getting hospitalized, he grew frightened. He ran away from the Toad and rushed to find Luigi.

"Luigi!" he said frantically as soon as he found his green-clad sibling. "There was this Toad who said I'm gonna get hospitalized because he said I was..." Mario tried to pronounce the word. "Bully-mic? He said I'm getting needles in my arms and I won't get outta the hospital for a long time and-"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, _calm down_, Mario!" Luigi quickly stopped him. "_Bully-mic?_ What do you mean?"

The little wolf tried to remember what the Toad had said. "The Toad said he saw me eat a lot, then throw it up, and then he said I was gonna get hospitalized for that!"

Luigi put two and two together. "Oh, _bulimic!_" he said, understanding. Then he turned to Mario. "No, Mario, you're not bulimic. That Toad doesn't know you're pregnant, so he assumed all the throwing up in the first trimester was because you're doing it on purpose. Don't worry, you won't get hospitalized for anything."

"I won't...?" Mario asked, his heart starting to beat normally again.

"Nope, it'll be alright," Luigi reassured.

* * *

These little panic attacks seemed to occur more often as the days passed on. If any Toad said anything to him that seemed wrong in the least, Mario would freak out and run away, no matter how trivial the matter seemed. Luigi noticed a change in this and talked to Peach about it, who agreed that something was shaking him up. But they decided not to go to Dr. Toadley's this time, as it didn't seem too serious to bother him with. These were obviously nothing more than typical mood swings that the little wolf was experiencing.

The two decided that it would be best if Mario was secluded from these questioning Toads and accusing eyes for a while to steady his nerves.

Maybe a certain trip to the castle gardens would help...

* * *

"These flowers are really in bloom now," Peach commented, tipping the water can over a patch of young fire-colored lilies.

"Soon they'll grow up more and become Fire Flowers!" Mario replied.

Peach had invited Mario to tend the garden with her, something he had not done in quite a while. It felt refreshing to sit out here in the warm sun, tending to the blooming flowers that gave off sweet aromas and pretty sights. And she was glad that Mario seemed less shaken up, now that there was no one else to question him. He seemed plenty happy here in the gardens, tending to his beloved flowers with great care.

"And they'll be even more beautiful now that you're taking care of them," she continued, pointing at him.

Mario blushed a soft shade of red, then turned to a container full of flower pots filled with different types of flora. "Do you think we might be able to get these planted today?" he asked.

"Absolutely! In fact, I think there's a bare spot over there that could use some of your pretty flowers," Peach replied, pointing to some plain bulrushes in the corner. "And here, I've brought a spade to help." She turned and got a small silver spade out from her pocket. Instead of wearing her traditional pink dress, the princess had donned a white tank top and a pink low-cut shirt, along with some simple blue jeans. It felt freeing to wear these clothes, though she knew that if Toadsworth saw her, he'd get all flustered and lecture her about how princesses always needed to look _regal_ and _proper_.

"Okie-dokie, let's go!" Mario said excitedly. He bent down to lift the container, but then Peach realized how heavy it must be. "No, honey, don't strain yourself, I'll get it," she said, stopping him. "Just grab the spade and head on over there and I'll join you in a bit."

"Are you sure?" Mario asked nervously. He didn't want to be a burden...

"Yes, I'll be fine, don't worry," Peach reassured, picking up the container. As she predicted, it was a bit heavy, but she knew it would be better if she carried it instead of him. Plus, she could handle it.

Minutes later, the two moved to the empty bulrushes with the flowers and tools. Peach dug the holes with her spade, while Mario carefully removed the flowers from the pot and placed them in the holes. Then, after moving the dirt back on them, he took the watering can and sprinkled some water on the newly planted flowers.

This continued until every flower was in its new home, their beauty making up for the plainness of the bulrushes.

"Wow, you really know how to light up the place, huh, Mario?" Peach complimented, amazed by how beautiful the flora looked among the bulrushes. "They look wonderful."

Mario blushed red again and smiled. "Th-Thanks..."

Feeling her throat parched, Peach spoke again. "Hey, you want some lemonade? With this sun beating down on us all morning, I could use some refreshments."

"Yeah, I could go for a glass..." Mario consented.

Peach smiled and stood up. "I'll be right back. I'm gonna go make the lemonade, okay?" she said.

"Okay," Mario replied.

The princess smiled again and turned, heading for the castle doors.

* * *

A few minutes earlier...

Mr. L was walking through the streets of Toad Town, near the castle. Everyone who saw him panicked and ran away, since they all knew how dangerous he could be when provoked.

But he didn't pay any attention to the fleeing Toads. There were too many things on his mind.

Ever since that one morning when he had woken up in his bed, entirely unclothed, he had been in some kind of blank state; all that Booquila had erased the memories of that past night. The last thing he remembered was drinking the bottle of alcohol after putting Mario to bed, and he was fretting that he might have done something harmful to the little wolf. He would have gone up to him sooner, but he had been scared of what might happen, which was rare, considering Mr. L didn't feel these types of emotions often.

"Maybe I _did_ do something to him..." he kept thinking. "Maybe that's why I haven't seen him at the Field of Paper Flowers in a month."

After thinking about it for many days, Mr. L finally decided that if something had indeed happened and Mario didn't want to see him anymore, he would accept that, though the thought of leaving Mario permanently was enough to depress him.

Now here he was, walking home from the supermarket with a few groceries in his arms. He had not seen Mario in a month now, so he decided that the little wolf must not want anything to do with him anymore. He cast one last look at the castle before turning back to face the forest...

...Then a rabbit hopped right in front of him.

"What the...?" Mr. L asked himself out of spite. He looked at the white, sparkly bunny, who stared right back at him with black, glittery eyes. The two stayed still for a while, waiting to see what the other would do. Neither Mr. L nor the rabbit moved from their position for at least five minutes.

When the rabbit took a step forward, the black-clad figure suddenly felt inclined to speak.

"Um...hi?" he said awkwardly.

Suddenly, the rabbit leapt up and pounced on Mr. L, throwing him off balance. The two crashed to the floor and all the contents flew out of the bags, including his keys. The white bunny instantly grabbed the keys and bounded off towards the castle gardens.

"Hey! Those are mine, give them back!" Mr. L shouted as soon as he realized what happened. He jumped to his feet and chased the rabbit, forgetting about the groceries at the moment.

The rabbit ignored him and kept bounding towards the castle gardens with the keys in its mouth, hopping easily over the boundary bushes that served as the perimeter. Unfortunately, Mr. L did not have such jumping abilities, so he had to crash through the bushes. He emerged from the plants, covered in loose leaves and twigs. Meanwhile, the rabbit simply kept hopping through the gardens, the keys making a jingling sound from its mouth.

The black-clad figure chased the hopping animal all throughout the tall bushes designed to look like a labyrinth. Whenever Mr. L lost sight of the rabbit, he would stop and wait to hear for the jingling of keys to sound before he made a move.

This continued for a few minutes until Mr. L saw the rabbit a few feet away from him. Its back was turned away, but the exit to the labyrinth-like bushes was right there in front of it. If it got away, he would never be able to catch up.

With a mad burst of speed, Mr. L dove forward and grabbed the pesky rabbit off the ground. "Haha, gotcha!" he said triumphantly. He snatched the keys back and dropped the white bunny, who simply bounded away, having enough fun for one afternoon.

"Let that teach you...not to mess with the Green Thunder!" Mr. L called after the rabbit, panting from exhaustion. He put the keys back in his pocket, trying to catch his breath.

Still trying to calm his beating heart, he headed towards the exit. He was thinking about how he was gonna get back to the groceries he had dropped when he noticed something flicker out of the corner of his eye. When Mr. L turned to look, he gasped and stopped in his tracks, all thoughts on groceries and rabbits forgotten.

It was Mario.


	10. Chapter 10

Everything around Mr. L seemed to stop and fade into oblivion as he caught sight of Mario. He could see the little wolf standing there next to a patch of flowers, playing with a lone butterfly he had found.

Without thinking, the black-clad figure started walking towards him, keeping very quiet. He really wanted to say something to Mario, even if it was just a simple greeting.

And an apology for what might have happened that night...

* * *

The soft sound of crunching grass made Mario look up from the butterfly he had found. He expected it to be Peach with the lemonade, but to his surprise, it wasn't. There was no one in front of him.

He looked around, just to make sure he wasn't hearing things.

Nothing.

There was nothing to see.

Then...where was that sound coming from...?

He turned back to the butterfly, but the small winged creature suddenly opened its wings and flew away, obviously noting something that Mario wasn't.

The soft noise of crunching grass made him look up again. This time, it was louder and clearer, much easier to track.

His sensitive wolf ears detected it from a 90° angle, so he turned to the right-

-and came face-to-face with Mr. L's silver eyes.

"Y-You...!" he cried out in shock, suddenly losing his balance and falling onto his backside. He anxiously backed away from the black-clad figure, whimpering in fear.

"Wait, wait, Mario, it's alright!" Mr. L frantically tried to say.

"Don't hurt me, p-please...!" the little wolf cried out, holding his arms out as if to protect himself. He did not want a repeat of that one night.

"I'm not gonna hurt you; I just want to talk!" Mr. L said, taking a step closer. He held out his hands, meaning no harm.

Unfortunately, Mario saw his uprising hands as a threat. He squealed in fright and tried to back away even more, but then he came into contact with the green bushes behind him. He was trapped.

Trapped, just like he was before.

"Please, just listen to me!" Mr. L said. "I just wanna say-"

"No, don't!" Mario cried out, not listening to Mr. L at all. His mind had taken him back to that one night, the night full of bloody pain and cruel laughing. The memories were so vivid and detailed, he thought he was actually going through it again. "S-Stop it!"

The way Mario was shaking, Mr. L panicked, thinking he was having a seizure or something. He ran forward to help, but then his foot tripped over the spade Peach had set down. He lost his balance and fell on top of Mario.

* * *

Meanwhile, Peach had just opened the back doors of the castle, holding a small metal tray with two glasses full of cherry lemonade, complete with ice and those mini umbrellas. She hummed quietly to herself as she walked through the flowered bushes, the ice softly clinking in the glasses.

"I hope he likes it, since this is a new recipe I'm trying out-" she was saying to herself when she suddenly heard the little wolf scream. Right after that, she heard someone else speak out.

"Oh, no!" she said, fearing the worst. She quickly set down the tray of lemonade on the ground (since she did not want them to break), then quickly ran to where she heard the scream sound out, her feet making dull thuds on the grass. She didn't know who the other person was, but she wasn't about to let them harm Mario in his current condition!

She came around the newly-flowered bushes just in time to see Mr. L jump on top of Mario, who was panicking beyond comprehension. Seeing this drove her mind into hyper-drive and made her temper boil.

"Get the hell off him!" she shouted as she dashed over and pried Mr. L off Mario. She swung him over to the other side, making him crash to the ground on his back. Then she quickly stood in front of Mario, shielding him.

It took a few seconds, but Mr. L got back up on his feet, his balance shaky. He was about to say something, but Peach cut him off. "_No!_ Get away from Mario!" she hissed. "Don't you _dare_ hurt him!"

"I-I wasn't gonna hurt him!" Mr. L finally managed to say. He held up his hands as though he was being arrested. "No harm!"

"Then what are you doing here?" Peach asked, not trusting his words at all.

"I just w-wanted to _talk_, alright? I haven't seen him in about a month, and I wanted to see if he's alright-"

"He's fine, okay? You can leave now," Peach said firmly. She knew how Mr. L had quite the hots for Mario, but she wasn't about to let him harm the little wolf because of his unpredictable actions.

"No, he's not. I _know_ he's not!" Mr. L said, his voice raised a little.

"Damn right you are. He started freaking out when you arrived," Peach retaliated, pointing to Mario, who was now crying into his hands.

"He didn't see me walk up to him, okay? He got scared. But I'm _not_ here to hurt him!" Mr. L defended himself. The black-clad figure was about to say something else, but then he caught sight of something: Mario's belly looked much rounder than the last time he had seen him. It looked tough and swollen, as if he had a tumor in there or something.

"Why does his stomach look like that?" he asked, his eyes widening. "Does he have a tumor?"

"No, Mario is fine," Peach said. She didn't want to tell him that the little wolf was pregnant. Why should he know?

"But it's round and swollen! There's something in there!" Mr. L insisted.

"I'm telling you, he's fine," Peach contradicted. "He might have gained a few pounds, but that's none of your business."

"I don't believe you," Mr. L said, his eyes narrowing. He could tell from the princess's tone of voice that she was lying. He started to take a step forward, but Peach quickly reacted.

"Don't take another step closer!" she warned in a stern voice.

Mr. L immediately froze and was about to retract his foot, but then he realized something. This woman had no control over him. She couldn't tell him what to do and expect him to obey like a trained dog! Just because she was a princess didn't mean he had to obey her every command just like one of her idiotic mushroom-headed servants.

With newly found courage, he took more steps forward.

"Stay back, I said!" Peach said again, curling her hands into fists.

"And who are you to stop me?" Mr. L only said, still coming forward.

Seeing the black-clad figure getting closer to her was starting to unnerve the princess. She broke out in a nervous sweat as she frantically tried to think of something. Looking down, she noticed the spade that was on the ground. Peach swooped down quickly and grabbed it, holding it in front of Mr. L as though it were a knife. "I'm not saying this again: Get away from Mario!" she said fiercely, though her voice trembled a little, giving away her true feelings of fear.

Mr. L merely scoffed at the little spade in her hand. He walked right up to her and grabbed her by the side of her arms, pulling her into the air; her feet inches off the ground. Peach was so scared by this that she was rendered motionless. What would he do to her?

"You cannot stop me from seeing Mario. You cannot stop me from doing _anything!_" he snapped at her, tired of her brash attitude. "Now, so help me, you are gonna answer my question: What the hell is in his-?!"

A loud _THWACK_ suddenly resonated in the air, startling the two. Immediately, Mr. L let go of Peach and fell facefirst onto the ground, unmoving. Peach herself lost her balance and fell too, but she quickly regained her footing and stood up again, breathing hard. Even Mario looked up from his tears to see what had made such a loud noise.

In front of them stood Luigi, holding a shovel in his hands. He, too, was breathing hard as he set it aside and walked towards them.

"Sorry for bursting in like that. I was coming outside here to feed the Chain Chomps..a-and I heard shouting. I looked over here, and I saw Mr. L grab you, which of course scared the life outta me! I ran over here, grabbed the nearest shovel...and gave him a good whack on the head," Luigi sheepishly explained, rubbing the back of his head. Then he turned to Peach. "Did he hurt you?"

Peach shook her head. "No...I'm fine," she said. "I was afraid he was gonna hurt Mario, so I stood up to him. But then he called my bluff, and he started coming over here real fast and grabbed me. But then you showed up." She breathed a sigh of relief and gave Luigi a small hug. "Thank you, Luigi."

"Don't mention it," the green-clad sibling said as they pulled apart. "I wouldn't let him hurt you or my brother."

Peach and Luigi turned towards the unconscious black-clad figure on the ground. "What do we do with him?" the princess asked.

"I know I just whacked him on the head with a shovel, but it wouldn't be nice of us to leave him like that," Luigi said. "I'll take him to the medical wing so he can rest there."

"And I'll take Mario back inside," Peach said, nodding.

* * *

At that moment, Mario suddenly let out an airy gasp. Both Peach and Luigi heard the sound and rushed to his side, thinking it was a gasp of pain.

"What's wrong, Bro?" Luigi asked, concerned.

Mario winced as he placed a hand on his belly. "S-Something just moved inside me...!"

It took Peach and Luigi a second, but then they understood.

"Oh, Mario, it's the baby!" Peach said excitedly."The baby?" the little wolf asked in awe.

"Yes, Bro, it must be starting to kick now!" Luigi replied.

"This is wonderful!" Peach exclaimed. "It means that the baby is developing even more by the minute! It might even be able to hear us by now!"

Interested by this information, Mario looked down as his rounded belly, his eyes widened. "Um, hi..." he said awkwardly to it, waving his hand a little.

The developing fetus responded with another kick that made Mario wince.

"Oh, honey, are you okay?" Peach asked.

The little wolf nodded. "Y-Yes, I'm fine," he said, his voice a bit shaky. "But it f-feels a little funny, especially when it kicks..." He winced again as he felt the fetus move once more. "Look, it's moving again!"

Without further ado, Peach and Luigi placed their hands on his belly and waited. After a few moments of silence, their eyes widened in delight as they felt swishing movements inside.

It felt wonderful to finally hear something from this tiny child...


	11. Chapter 11

It took a few days for Mario to get used to the kicking, but eventually, he did not mind the unborn child moving inside him anymore. It was only at night when this became slightly bothersome, as the fetus would suddenly move and kick him in the middle of the night, thus waking him up from his slumber. Because of this, he couldn't really sleep for the rest of the night when this happened. It was pretty difficult to rest when the baby was practically doing somersaults inside his belly.

Mario was getting more and more stares from the Toads now. His growing belly was starting to bulge, and he really did look like he was pregnant. The size of his belly had augmented so much, his shirt often slipped up, exposing the roundedness. The fact that he was also experiencing the typical pregnancy changes (mood swings, weird cravings, constant fatigue, etc.) didn't help his case much, as well. Sometimes, he would look all tired and depressed, and other times he would act like he was the happiest and most energetic person on earth. And when he wasn't moody, he was usually eating some strange food combinations, such as soy sauce on his strawberry milkshakes and bananas mixed with spaghetti and tacos. Once, he cleaned out the whole junk food pantry because of his hunger. And another time, Luigi had to stop him from stealing a little Toad's cookies. It wasn't that he was trying to be mean, he just really wanted the food.

Because of all this, he attracted plenty of attention from all the other Toads, some of who were very suspicious. There began to be hushed whispers and secret rumors floating about. Peach and Luigi were worried about this (Luigi especially). Should they tell everyone the news or not? If they did, the Toads might not handle the news well. If they didn't, how would they explain the baby when the time arrived? It would be hard, especially if he or she looked like Mario.

* * *

"Ah, Luigi and Mario! Am I glad to see you again? Indeed I am!" Dr. Toadley said pleasantly to the two brothers as they walked into his office again. It was now time for Mario's second ultrasound, and the doctor was very excited to see how the fetus was developing (though he did a very good job of not letting his feelings show past a simple smile). It had only been about a week and a half ago, but since male pregnancies occurred much quicker, it would be accurate to say that the baby was at the same developmental stage of a normal five-month-old fetus. There were plenty of new things happening in the womb, he knew it.

"Mario, if you would," Dr. Toadley continued, gesturing to the bed in the back room. The little wolf nodded and headed back there, followed by Luigi.

Once Mario was seated and ready, the doctor turned on the TV, poured that gel on Mario's rounded belly again, and then set the transducer on it. A few moments later, the hazy black-and-white images appeared on the screen again.

For a few moments, there were no words to be said as the three looked at the monitor. The fetus had developed a lot more than they all had previously thought. It looked much less like a lumpy Play-Doh creation and more like a human being, with the obvious exception of the tail, of course. The hair was now growing, and there was a thin layer of it above the head. The ears were much more viewable now, as they had a little dark layer on them. There seemed to be fur on the tail, too, but it was a bit difficult to tell, since it was moving back and forth. The eyelids were now formed, though they were closed. The fetus also had its thumb in its mouth, giving off the impression that it was sleeping.

But the most noticeable feature was the fetus's heartbeat, a deep whooshing sound that emanated from the monitor. It was a soft, pacifying sound that sent everyone into awed silence.

"Wow..." Dr. Toadley said, breaking the silence. "Did I ever think that I would live to see the day that I get to see a baby developing inside a male? No, never," he said. "But it has finally happened! And look! The fetus seems as healthy as ever, and the development is occurring at a nice pace." He pointed to the fetus's chest. "I'm pretty sure we can all hear how strong the heartbeat is," he continued, smiling.

He pointed to the head and tail. "A fine layer of hair has formed, as well as the body hair, called lanugo, that will keep it warm and protect it. It will shed about a few days before and after birth, so don't worry about it."

That last sentence reminded Luigi of something. "Hey, Dr. Toadley," he asked. "When Mario goes into labor...how is the baby gonna come out?"

There was an uncomfortable silence that followed Luigi's question. Apparently, no one had thought of this before.

"Well, um..." Dr. Toadley started, hesitating. "I have never seen a male give birth myself, so do I have any idea on how the baby is to come out? No, I do not. But should the spores should take care of that issue for us? Yes, they should. Since the reproduction spores have made a womb for the baby to nestle in, it is most likely that it will also create a birth canal for the fetus to travel during labor, as well. The way we can be sure of this is if the baby turns itself in the proper head-down position during the last few weeks, as if for a normal pregnancy. But if the baby does not position itself in due time, then that means that there is no birth canal to travel through and the child will have to be born via a C-section. But all that is a month and a half away, so we have plenty of time to find out."

"What about everyone? Should we tell them the news now?" Luigi asked.

Dr. Toadley exhaled slowly before answering. "The thing is," he started, "in my experience, whenever news about something as critical as Mario's pregnancy gets out, something bad always happens. Would it be best to remain quiet? Yes, it probably would, although the Toads will probably come to the same assumption, too. The decision is ultimately yours, but please consider all of the consequences if you do tell. Are some Toads very gossipy? Indeed, they are. The news might spread all throughout the entire Kingdom, and that wouldn't be good for any of us."

"Yeah, it wouldn't," Luigi said, nodding.

"My advice for this would be to tell only your closest friends, the ones you can trust to not to spread the word," the doctor spoke up. "Again, I am not requiring you to do anything, but do I simply want Mario and the child to be safe? Yes, without a doubt."

Luigi nodded again. He did want to tell a few people, since he wanted to plan a little something for his brother.

Dr. Toadley turned and switched off the TV, the images on the monitor fading into black. "Alright then," he said, going over to the table on the side. He picked up his clipboard and wrote something on it. "Will I see you back here in a week? It is decidedly so. When we do the third ultrasound, I will give the prediction day of the birth and we will discuss on how Mario is to act when he goes into labor."


	12. Chapter 12

"Okay, everyone, gather around. I've got something important to tell you," Luigi said.

Peach, Daisy, Yoshi, Toad and Toadsworth were all sitting in Luigi's room a few days later. Luigi and Peach had discussed on who to tell the big news to, since they wanted to do something for the little wolf. Luckily for them, Mario was sleeping in his own room, having felt very tired again. Everyone else in the room had no idea what was going on, though.

"What's this about, Luigi?" Yoshi asked, sipping on a red drink.

Luigi anxiously wrung his hands, wondering how his friends would handle the news. "What I'm going to tell you next must be kept a secret between us. You can't tell anyone about this, okay? It's really important."

Everyone nodded solemnly. They didn't know what he would tell them, but it sounded pretty serious.

"Promise you won't say a word to anyone else?" Luigi added, needing confirmation.

"We promise," everyone repeated simultaneously.

The younger sibling in green took a deep breath. "Okay, then," he started. "You guys have all seen how Mario has been acting lately?"

"Yeah, I've seen him. He looks like he ate a whole watermelon without chewing it!" Yoshi said first, taking another sip. "I'm wondering how that happened, since I can't even do that myself!"

"He's always tired for some reason," Toad added. "I asked him to play _Eels and Escalators_ with me, and he fell asleep before I even rolled the dice!"

"And when he's not tired, he's winning heated debates with that tough old chef in the dining hall!" Daisy exclaimed. "I saw that about a month ago, and it was amazing!"

"Master Mario _has_ been acting rather strangely," Toadsworth remarked. "His appetite reduced to nothing a month ago, and now he's stuffing himself with just about any kind of pastry he could find! I had to hide my strawberry waffles from him!"

"Well...we know why he's acting like that," Luigi continued, gesturing to Peach and himself. He took another deep breath. "It's because...Mario's pregnant."

* * *

Yoshi immediately did a spit take. "WHAT?!"

"Yo, _for real?_" Toad asked, stunned.

"That can't be true! This has to be a joke!" Daisy exclaimed, laughing a little out of spite.

"Master Luigi, I must remind you that men are not able to be impregnated," Toadsworth said, his voice a bit shaky. "Mario can't possibly be carrying a child inside him."

"No, it's true!" Luigi said quickly. He turned to Peach, who gave him a manila folder. He opened it and took out a photo of the most recent ultrasound, giving it to Toadsworth. "Look, it's right here!"

The elderly Toad adjusted his spectacles before taking a look at the photo. His eyes widened and his face paled as he saw the black-and-white images of the developing fetus. "Sweet mother of Peach..."

"Lemme see it!" Daisy exclaimed, snatching the photo from Toadsworth. When she saw the fetus, she did a double take. "You sure this is Mario's baby?" she asked hesitantly, turning it around. "This could be fake, you know...what if this is simply some other woman's ultrasound picture?"

"Have you seen any humans pregnant around here?" Luigi asked. "This is a human baby."

"Um...no?" Daisy replied.

Peach came over to Daisy and pointed at the photo. "See right there? This baby has a tail," she said.

"Damn, it really is Mario's baby then," Daisy said, surprised.

"Our turn!" Toad called while Yoshi took the photo from Daisy. The two eagerly looked at the picture. "So he didn't eat a watermelon, then," Yoshi said. "Darn, I was gonna ask him how'd he did that."

"Like the watermelon was gonna stay in his belly for a month," Toad replied, rolling his eyes.

"How long has Mario been pregnant?" Toadsworth, seeming to have gotten over his little panic attack.

"About two months now," Peach replied.

"Wait, he's only been preggers two months, and his belly's already swelled up like a balloon?" Daisy asked. "I don't get it."

"Oh, Dr. Toadley said that male pregnancies occur three times faster than normal pregnancies," Luigi explained. "My guess is that he'll be due in about a month and a half."

"And why wait till now to tell us?" Yoshi asked, feeling a bit offended.

Peach looked nervously at Luigi, then turned back to the group. "We weren't sure if you guys would handle the news well," she said softly.

"Well, I suppose that would make sense," Toadsworth said, nodding. "It does sound like an impossible story. But it does explain his erratic behavior and his swollen stomach."

Toad looked at the ultrasound image again. "So, is the baby a boy or girl?" he asked.

"It'll probably be a girl," Daisy spoke up. "I can show her how to be awesome at sports and have rockin' tea parties!"

"Nah, I think it'll be a boy," Yoshi contradicted. "I can teach him how to gulp down apples in a single bite and go on adventures!"

"Well, Mario wants the gender to be a surprise, so we won't know until the baby is born," Luigi said. "But that is part of the reason why I wanted you guys to come here."

Everyone quieted down. There was more?

Luigi looked around and lowered his voice, as if Mario himself was listening through the walls. "Peach and I want to throw Mario a surprise baby shower in about two weeks, when he enters the third trimester."

Daisy did a gasp that was so loud and high-pitched, the windows could have cracked. "Omigosh, REALLY?!" she squealed.

"_Shhh!_" Peach shushed her. "It's supposed to be a surprise! We can't let Mario find out!"

Daisy immediately shushed. "Oops, sorry," she whispered sheepishly.

"A baby shower sounds great, Luigi!" Yoshi said in a quiet voice. "Especially if there's gonna be food!"

"I can help with the decorations!" Daisy piped up in an excited, yet quieter voice. "Ooh, I've always wanted to plan one of these!"

"It will have to be a private one, though," Luigi said. "If word about this baby shower or Mario's pregnancy gets out and the wrong person hears it, that could be bad news for us!"

"Why would it be bad?" Toad asked, confused. "I thought baby showers were supposed to be big events."

Luigi and Peach (besides Dr. Toadley) were the only ones who fully understood the little wolf's inner powers, so they tried to word it as simply as possible. "Dr. Toadley believes the baby may be born with extraordinary powers, so if Bowser or any other bad guy finds out, they might try to kidnap him or her," Luigi explained.

"And if Bowser kidnaps me again before Mario's due, and he tries to save me, Bowser will definitely find out about the baby," Peach added, worriedly. She hated to be a liability in all of this. Of course she was strong, but Bowser was far larger and stronger than she was. She could never break out of his iron grip, and whenever he crashed through the walls, roaring fire, she would always become so paralyzed with fear that she couldn't do anything but scream for help.

Everyone gasped. "Then we are in a graver situation than I thought!" Toadsworth said, shocked and concerned for the well-being of his princess. "We cannot let that fiend Bowser find the baby, and we certainly cannot let Peach be kidnapped!" he cried, his face turning two shades paler. "What are we going to do?"

"The best thing for all of us to do is keep Mario's pregnancy a secret," Luigi said. "If Bowser never finds out, he'll never have a reason to kidnap the baby."

"But what if Bowser comes to kidnap Peach?" Toad asked. "I know he's definitely willing to do that."

"Dr. Toadley and I have talked about that. We're setting up a secret passageway all within the castle that leads to a safe room that Peach and Mario can escape to. That way, no one will get kidnapped, and Bowser won't find out about the baby!" Luigi answered. "I've handled Bowser before, and if he poses a threat to the kingdom, I'm more than willing to stop him."

"Attaboy, Luigi!" Yoshi and Toad both cheered.

"Thank goodness for that," Toadsworth said, wiping his forehead in relief. "I feel a trifle better now that the princess will be secure, as well as the unborn child."

"Now...about that baby shower..." Daisy began, with a twinkle in her eye.


	13. Chapter 13

There were only two weeks before the planned baby shower, so everyone had to work quickly, but secretly. Daisy was in charge of the decorations and the party supplies (such as the balloons and confetti). Yoshi and Toad were in charge of the food. Luigi and Peach took it upon themselves to organize everything into place, as well as buying the baby necessities. The baby was due in a month, and there wasn't anything to help take care of him/her.

And most importantly, all of them made sure not to say a word to Mario about it. They remembered how suspicious he got when they tried to plan a surprise birthday party for him, so they were determined not to screw it up this time. Daisy, Toad and Yoshi were careful to stay out of his sight completely, and while Luigi and Peach did stick with him, they were careful not to branch into any topic that could relate to the shower. The only "baby thing" they talked about was the third ultrasound that was in a week.

* * *

Meanwhile, Mario was dealing with issues of his own. While his appetite was still growing, his energy was quickly withering away, even though he was cutting back on junk food and was trying to be more active. Part of this was because the developing fetus was continuously kicking him. In the past, they just felt like weird little taps, but now they were stronger. They were actually starting to hurt now. He thought about telling Luigi about it, but then he thought that he was bothering his brother too much. He should deal with it himself.

He also didn't want to have those Toads staring at his rounded belly, so he stayed in his room as often as possible, where he knew he would have privacy. He now hated going down to the dining hall when it was time to eat; those Toads would always stare and whisper among themselves. He wanted to ask Luigi if he could eat in his room, but again, he felt that he was being too self-centered. He decided he should just deal with it - even with that one Toad who laughed at him for being too overweight.

That one Toad (named Harold) was really trying Mario's patience. He was one of those Toads who had a swollen ego and always had an easy life, and now he was making Mario's life miserable. Whenever he passed him in the dining room, he would whisper something like, "_Weight Watchers_ is looking for you, Mario," or "Mario, have you ever heard of a gym? You should try it." The worst comment the little wolf received from Harold was, "Hey, Mario, did you eat a bowling ball or something? Oh, wait, that can't be it; your stomach would be smaller. I guess you're just getting fat." This particular comment made Mario lose his appetite for the rest of the day.

He didn't know why this Toad was badgering him like this, but then he figured he must have offended Harold or something. The next time Harold came up to him, Mario timidly said, "Harold, have I done something to offend you? If so, I'm very sorry for what I did. I will try to make it up for you."

Though Mario didn't know this, Harold faked forgiveness. He pressed a hand to his heart, as though he was touched. "Oh, Mario, of course I forgive you," he said mockingly. "But it's too bad your cute little apology won't help you lose that thing you call your waistline."

The smile instantly left Mario's face.

"How about you stop eating so much crap, lose that fat suit, and then we'll talk," Harold sneered as he turned and walked away from Mario.

For some reason, the little wolf actually felt like running after him and punching the guy, but then he came to his senses and thought otherwise. "No, hurting him is not the answer..." he tried to reassure himself. "Just ignore him and it won't matter anymore..."

However, all of this continued until the day of the third ultrasound.

* * *

The appointment was set after lunch, so around eleven o' clock, both Mario and Luigi headed to the dining hall. Luigi, however, still had no idea that his brother was being bullied by Harold, and Mario had no idea that his friends were planning a surprise baby shower for him. The two siblings were careful not to let their secrets slip.

Upon entering the dining hall, Mario saw all eyes turn towards him.

Then the hushed whispering began.

His cheeks blushing red, the little wolf tried to hide behind Luigi, who was too busy thinking about the future baby shower to notice. He really detested being stared at, especially with all these whispers floating about. It was like they were judging him, even without knowing he was pregnant.

What made everything worse was that Harold's words kept invading Mario's mind, preventing him from thinking clearly. He was very hungry, yes, but if Harold saw him eating, the Toad would surely mock him. But if he didn't eat anything, Luigi would want to know why.

Maybe he should just eat something really small, like an apple. Then, after the appointment with Dr. Toadley, he could go back to the dining hall and eat some more, after everyone had left.

Mario smiled to himself. That way, everyone will be happy, and Harold won't find any reason to mock him.

However, as soon as he got to the buffet lines, there was something that made him stop in his tracks.

Strawberry pie with whipped cream on top.

His mouth watered automatically as he looked at the pie on the dessert section. Strawberries were his absolute favorite thing to eat, and here was a whole pie of it! And with whipped cream, no less!

Mario knew that he should just skip the pie and go for something smaller and healthier, but his hunger eventually won over. He licked his lips hungrily as he instinctively took the whole pie and went to sit down with Luigi at their table.

When they sat down, Luigi cast an eye at Mario's pie. "Ooh, strawberry, I see," he said with a smile. "I guess dessert is first, then?"

Mouth full of pie, Mario only nodded happily.

Luigi looked down to eat his own lunch, when his phone suddenly rang. When he saw who the caller was, his eyes widened.

"Um, Mario?" he asked sheepishly. "I gotta take this call, okay? I'll be right back, don't worry. You just stay here and keep eating, okay?"

Mario nodded again, his mouth still full.

Luigi got up quickly and went across the hall to the restroom, for he knew that Mario's earshot had a pretty far radius. He placed the phone to his ear and spoke in a hushed voice. "Hey, Daisy, how are the decorations going?"

* * *

Within minutes, Mario was so absorbed in eating his pie that everyone and everything around him faded into nothingness. He mysteriously felt at peace, something he had not truly felt since the "date of conception", as Dr. Toadley put it.

However, this meant he didn't see Harold walk right up in front of him.

"Oh, well you look at this?" Harold said in a sniveling voice. "Seems like _someone_ is cheating on his diet."

Mario immediately stopped chewing and swallowed. He tried to speak, but Harold cut him off again. "No, no, don't try to apologize. I was only trying to help, but I guess when you're so fat, even exercise doesn't help, huh?"

The words hurt worse than a speeding Bullet Bill. Mario stayed quiet, though he began to feel something darken in his heart.

Harold spoke louder this time, hoping to attract a crowd. "I guess the hero's really letting himself go, am I right?" he called out, obviously trying to sound casual.

Several Toads looked up automatically, wondering what all the commotion was about. Some of the more curious ones came closer to the table.

Harold leaned in close to Mario. "You disgust me," he said in a low voice. "I used to look up to you; you were my hero. But now look at you. All you do now is eat your heart out, and expect all of us to do everything for you, with your 'oh-so-innocent' act. You're nothing but a fake."

The dark feeling in Mario's heart worsened with every word. It didn't help that the baby was wriggling inside him again, twisting up his emotions radically. That dark feeling rapidly surfaced into white-hot anger, ready to bite back.

Without thinking, Mario stood up abruptly, grabbed the rest of the pie, and smashed it in Harold's face.


	14. Chapter 14

Everyone gasped in shock.

Immediately, Mario realized what he had done. He stepped back nervously, his heartbeat going into hyperdrive. He was in so much trouble now, he knew it.

Hot tears stung his eyes as he tried to speak, tried to apologize. But no words would come out. T

he pie fell from Harold's face to the floor. The Toad slowly raised his hands and wiped some of the whipped cream off. The death glare he gave Mario was so infused with anger that it could have easily burned a hole in the wall.

Not to mention the judgmental stares from all these surrounding Toads...

Silence...

Pure, deafening silence...

The little wolf couldn't handle all this pressure. He let out a soft cry and ran out of the dining hall as fast as his legs could carry him, not daring to look back.

Immediately after that, all the Toads started talking at once.

"Oh, sweet shrooms, did you see that?"

"Harold, are you okay? That looked like it hurt..."

"Who does Mario think he is, striking one of us?"

"Not only has he gotten fat, he's gone crazy!"

* * *

"Daisy, I've already told you, don't get the green and yellow banners, they're not part of the color scheme. Yes, I know we don't know the baby's gender, but it doesn't matter. Just get the pink and the blue ones, I know Mario won't mind-" Luigi was saying when he suddenly heard a loud clamor in the dining hall. This made him concerned, so he politely told Daisy he was leaving and quickly headed out.

"What's going on?" Luigi asked loudly, over the voice of the Toads. He could see one Toad standing in the middle, his face covered in red goo and whipped cream. But he did not see his brother anywhere. "And where's Mario?"

"Mario threw a pie at Harold!" one of the Toads called out in response. Immediately after that, the clamoring began again.

"Hey, hey, calm down!" Luigi had to shout. Once all the simultaneous chattering stopped, he continued. "What do you mean, he threw a pie?"

Harold walked up to Luigi, wiping away the pie remains on his face. His body was trembling and he seemed very feeble. "I-I was only talking with Mario for a second, when he stood up in anger and shoved that pie into my face!" he cried. He gave a little sniffle as he wiped more whipped cream off his face.

"Oh, goodness..." Luigi said to himself quietly, his eyes looking down at the floor. Would his brother really have done a thing like this? He looked up again. "Where is he?"

"He ran out of the dining room...h-he wouldn't even bother to apologize!" Harold continued, pointing towards the dining hall entrance.

"Okay, I'll go find him and talk to him," Luigi said. "You...uh, get cleaned up."

He turned and went out of the dining hall, leaving Harold to "grieve" with the other Toads, telling everyone how bad-blooded Mario is.

* * *

Luigi trekked up the stairs quickly, wondering where his brother was. With the baby inside him, he probably didn't go too far. Still, Mario was pretty quick on his feet when he wanted to.

"Mario, where are you?" Luigi called as he reached the top of the stairs and looked around.

Of course, there was no answer, but Luigi did see that the only door that was closed on this floor was Mario's. The younger sibling quickly headed over and opened it. "Mario?" he called again.

The room seemed empty, but Luigi sensed that someone was here; he could feel a presence. He walked in and checked under the bed, but only the dust bunnies greeted him. Then he checked the bathroom, but no one was there. Finally he opened the closet door, and there, sitting in a huddled ball among the hanged clothes and shoes, was his teary-eyed brother. "Am I in trouble?" Mario asked in a tiny voice.

Luigi sighed with relief that he had found him. "No, you're not in trouble," he assured, "but we will have to talk about this after the doctor's appointment."

* * *

"Is the baby's development progressing nicely? It is!" Dr. Toadley said happily as he moved the transducer wand around Mario's rounded belly. The black-and-white images moved around on the television screen, aligned with the doctor's movements. The fetus definitely looked like a human now, even with the tiny tail and animal ears. It seemed to be sleeping right now, as its movements were slow and calm. The tail had tucked in between the legs, so the gender of the baby was still unknown.

The most notable part was that the fetus had positioned itself in the head-down position, so that meant the spores had indeed made a birth canal. Natural birth, it is.

"Now, since the day of conception wasn't...recorded, finding out the due date was a little harder than usual, but have I gotten it? Of course I do!" Dr. Toadley continued as he grabbed a folder from a nearby desk while still keeping one hand on the transducer. "According to my research, the child should arrive in 5 weeks, five days."

Luigi counted the days. "That'll be the 15th of June."

"Are you correct? You indeed are," Dr. Toadley said. "However, if the child arrives before that time, you must notify me immediately. A premature infant requires great care, as its lungs may not be fully developed. And since Mario's pregnancy is three times the rate of a normal one, there may be more complications."

"What if the baby's late?" Luigi asked. "It shouldn't be a problem if it is only a few days late, but if the baby has not arrived within a week or two, notify me as well. Mario's body isn't built to carry a child, especially in his wolf form, and there is a chance the womb might perforate if the baby stays in too long."

Mario did not understand the word _perforate,_ but when he saw his brother's eyes widen, he grew a little nervous.

"But do not worry, my given due dates are usually very accurate," Dr. Toadley reassured. "Of course, there have been a few cases in which the babies were born earlier or later. Also, it's normal for Mario to experience Braxton-Hicks labor pains from now to the actual birth date. But do not worry too much. As long as the pain goes away when he moves, they're false."

Luigi suddenly remembered something from the last visit. "So where will the baby come out?" he asked. "I know there's a birth canal, but where...wh-where does it lead...?"

There was an awkward moment of silence before the doctor answered. "Well, Luigi...I know for sure that the birth canal will not intercede with any of Mario's reproductive organs, since they can't connect...so my best guess would be that it will lead in between."

"In between..._ohh_," Luigi said sheepishly, understanding. It was a bit awkward to talk about such subjects, but he knew it would be better to know than to not know at all and be unprepared.

"Do I know how any of this makes sense? No, not a clue. But once Mario's water breaks and the cervix begins to expand, we will have a better understanding."

"Water breaking?" Mario asked, curious.

Dr. Toadley shared an uneasy look with Luigi before turning to the elder brother. "Yes, Mario," he said. "Since the spores have built a womb and a birth canal, would it make sense to also make an amniotic sac? Yes, it would. Your baby is currently surrounded by the "water", giving it a sort of protective barrier. When the baby is ready to come out, the water will come out, though it might seem a bit uneasy for you. Within the next 24 hours, the labor pains will begin."


	15. Chapter 15

Mario had been hoping that Luigi would forget about the pie incident during the third ultrasound, but to his dismay, Luigi had immediately taken Mario up to his room as soon as Dr. Toadley had dismissed them. Closing the door, Luigi sat Mario on the bed and then sat next to him.

"Alright, Mario, tell me what happened with Harold in the dining room," Luigi said promptly, getting straight to business.

The little wolf looked down at his hands. He felt utterly ashamed for what he had done to the Toad, and he could definitely feel the blush of fire on his cheeks. "I-I...I just got _mad_," he whispered in a tiny voice.

Luigi raised an eyebrow in surprise. It was very rare for Mario to be moved to anger in his wolf form, as he was always so happy and naïve. What on earth had happened for such a thing to happen?

"Harold...h-he was making f-fun of me...all the time...b-because he thinks that I-I'm...fat," Mario continued, feeling hot tears brim in his eyes. "He says th-that I disgust him...and that I'm letting m-myself go. H-He says I'm weak."

Luigi was astounded. He had no idea that Harold was saying all these things about his brother. The Toad's "sob story" in the dining hall was seeming more and more unbelievable.

"He kept saying th-these things to m-me...and then I-I lost it. I took the pie a-and I threw it at his f-face!" the little wolf continued, feeling a note of contempt rise in his voice. His hands shakily rolled into fists.

"How long has he been saying these things to you?"

"About a week..." Mario said quietly.

"_What?!_ Mario, why didn't you tell me sooner? He was bullying you!" Luigi burst out unexpectedly.

The little wolf reared back and whimpered in shame. "I-I'm sorry, Weegee..." he whispered, hanging his head. "I thought I could handle it myself...I didn't w-want to bother you..."

"No, telling me will never bother me," Luigi reassured, placing a hand on his brother's shoulders. "If anyone is bullying you for any reason, never stay silent."

Mario tried to answer, but all he could manage was a small nod. The tears in his eyes slipped down when he blinked.

Luigi exhaled and stood up. "Come on, let's go talk to Harold again," he said in a quieter voice.

Mario immediately let out a frightened whine. "I-I don't want to..." he whispered. He remembered the look of death that Harold and the other Toads in the dining hall had given him. It still sent cold chills up his spine.

"Well, we have to, okay? I'm not gonna let him hurt you anymore," Luigi said firmly, taking Mario's hand. "Those Toads also need to know that Harold was deceiving them. But don't worry, I'll be with you."

It took a little while, but Luigi confronted Harold in the dining room again and made him apologize to the little wolf, though the apology itself sounded too saccharine and staged to be sincere. Mario nodded anyway and forgave him.

Though Luigi couldn't exactly inform everyone about the pregnancy, he did make sure to explain that all of this was just a big misunderstanding and that no one should question Mario about his distended belly any further because it was a sensitive subject to him.

The whole time, Mario hid shyly behind his brother. Even though Luigi said no more questioning, he could still feel those accusing eyes on him. Worst of all was Harold, whose steely-eyed look seemed to burn right into him, the look of revenge.

The fact that the baby was wriggling inside him again didn't help at all, either. Luckily, the fetus was moving less and less now, but when it did move, it would still hurt, as if someone had struck a blow to his stomach. He wondered how things would go once the _water broke_, as Dr. Toadley had put it. Would that hurt, too?

* * *

In the heart of the Dark Lands, Bowser was pacing back and forth in his castle, listening intently as a Koopa Troopa read off the agenda for kidnapping Peach.

"Okay, so by heading west, we can fly the airships over the mountains. It would be best to fly on a cloudy day, since the clouds would serve as a cover for us and..." the Koopa Troopa was saying.

Bowser nodded, listening until the minion was finished. "When would the next cloudy day be?"

"Um, let's see," the Koopa Troopa said as he dug out the weather report from under his stack of papers. "The report says that there would be a series of cloudy and stormy days during the early days of June, a few weeks from now. With your permission, your Awesomeness, if we assemble the troops now, we could gather up the units and the equipment and be ready when the cloudy days arrive."

"Hmm, sounds good. And when those clouds come in, there's no way we'll be spotted until I have the princess!" Bowser laughed. "Alright, Jeff, round up all the minions and get them ready!"

"Yes, Lord Bowser, sir!" Jeff said attentively as he turned and ran down the hall.

Bowser smiled smugly to himself as he kept walking in the opposite direction. But he only got a few steps before Kamek, his right-hand man, came whizzing by on his broom. He was flying so haphazardly that he nearly hit Bowser.

"Hey, watch it!" Bowser snapped.

"Pardon me, your Grouchiness," Kamek apologized, "but I have something of utmost importance to tell you."

"Well, hurry up! I'm a busy guy here!" Bowser said, tapping his foot impatiently.

"There has been something detected on the Power Radar," the robed Magikoopa said.

Bowser raised his eyebrows. That got his attention. "You mean, there's a new kind of power out there that I can steal?"

"Precisely."

* * *

Kamek then led Bowser into his lab full of potions, spells and whatnot. In the corner was a large radio screen that looked exactly like the ones submarines use.

The Magikoopa pointed to a large red beacon that beeped on the right side of the radar screen. "Right there, your Awfulness. It appeared about thirty minutes ago."

Bowser nodded and took a look at the beacon. But what interested him was the color.

"Hey, Kamek, I remember when you showed me the power of the Sprixies. It was a blue dot. But this one's red and glowing. Why?"

Kamek adjusted the black rim of his glasses. "Well, your Majesty, this type is what I'd consider an Alpha Star. It is the best kind you can get your hands on."

"What's so special about it?"

"Alpha Star-types are totally pure. It's not influenced by anything. You can either use it for good or for evil. And it's got tremendous energy and power. Only bad thing is that it's so rare..."

Kamek started mumbling to himself. "Of course, I know Mario in that wolf-ish form of his is a dead-on Alpha Star, but that power is so deeply contained, I don't know how to extract it. It's like it's sealed away. And then there's that cursed spell that revolves around him..."

"Hey! Listen up!" Bowser snapped. "You said it was a pure power, right?"

Kamek turned back to the Koopa King and nodded. "Yeah. Totally world-dominating if you get it."

Bowser thought about all of this. "Where is it located?"

Kamek turned towards the screen and typed in a few keys. The radar screen zoomed out a little. "Hmm, it's surprisingly close to us, King Bowser. It's in the Mushroom Kingdom, somewhere in Toad Town."

"Really, now?" Bowser asked, his eyebrows raising in delight. "Well, this is perfect! In about two weeks or so, I'm setting out to kidnap Peach again! While I'm there, I may as well grab that power source, too! _Kill two birds with one stone_, right? Mwahaha!"


	16. Chapter 16

All those weeks of careful planning and secret purchases had paid off. Luigi, Peach, Daisy, Yoshi, Toad and Toadsworth had finally completed the work needed for the baby shower tomorrow. Toadsworth had booked and sealed off one of the party rooms to ensure privacy, while everyone else got the party supplies, food, and decoration. Daisy, Yoshi and Toad had made sure to steer clear of Mario so that he wouldn't get suspicious. Each one of them had also chipped in some pocket money for gifts and necessities, as well. Raising the child wouldn't be so easy without the necessary things.

Luigi couldn't wait till he could finally see the look on Mario's face. Peach was excited for the baby shower games, for she had always wanted to attend those. Yoshi and Toad were all about the food and goodie bags, while Daisy was anxious to watch Mario open the gifts. She had thrown in a couple nice items, and she hoped he and the baby would like them. Toadsworth was also happy for Mario and excited for the shower, but he also hoped that the party would go well.

Now all they could do was wait eagerly until the day of the baby shower...

* * *

Only one person was not happy.

As soon as Mr. L had figured out why he had woken up in the infirmary, he was furious. He hated the fact that both Peach and Luigi had prevented him from talking to Mario and his swollen belly, and he was also peeved at the fact that Luigi had whacked him with a shovel.

He also despised himself for not talking to Mario sooner. If that lump in his belly really was a tumor, then that might mean he wouldn't have a lot of time left. He had to talk with him and make amends meet. The fearful look on Mario's face told Mr. L that something bad did happen that night, and he wanted to apologize.

But Mr. L also knew that he could not approach the little wolf in public, for either Luigi or Peach might refrain him again. It had to be done at a private time, in secret. Given his current condition, what time would Mario be alone?

* * *

The night before the baby shower, Mario lay awake in his bed, staring mindlessly at the ceiling. It was well past midnight. His only source of light was the pale moonlight softly billowing in from the open window.

He yawned and rubbed his eyes for what seemed to be the thousandth time. He was completely exhausted, but the baby was awake and kicking, making it impossible to rest. The kicks weren't as frequent, but they were still pretty painful. Mario had no idea why, though. He had thought many times to talk with either Luigi or Peach, but after the Harold incident, he was too ashamed to ask. It seemed too much of a burden to put on them. They seemed very busy lately, always scurrying around, talking on the phone, running errands all the time.

Mario winced as the baby suddenly delivered another kick to his abdomen. "Why do you keep doing that?" he whispered in a tired voice. He placed his hand over his rounded belly. "Is it too crowded in there?"

The unborn child's only response was another kick that made Mario whimper in pain, followed by more immediately after.

"Ahh...!" Mario gasped. He tried to shift his position automatically, but the kicking made it impossible to move comfortably.

This was different. Usually, the baby's kicks had longer intervals of time, about fifteen to twenty minutes. But now the kid was wigging out, kicking every few seconds. It seemed endless.

"W-What's happening? Why are you doing that?" Mario asked worriedly. He felt very unnerved by these sharp movements; there was something else to it. It felt like...the baby was sending a message...

At once, his fluffy tail bushed up and his body grew tense. He sensed the presence of another being in the room.

"L-Luigi...?" he asked in a nervous whisper. "Is th-that you...?" He couldn't see much, the moonlight only reached a certain distance. If the door had opened, he didn't see it.

He heard boots softly thumping on the floor, coming near the bed. Mario's heart beat faster; he didn't know who it was. He heard a clinking noise, and then the lamp on the bed-stand turned on.

Mario let out a frightful gasp. "You...!" he cried out.

* * *

Mr. L instantly placed his finger to his lips. "Shh, please!"

"Wh-What do you want?!" Mario cried. He wanted to get up and run away, but his swollen belly wouldn't permit it. He couldn't even get up by himself anymore. He could barely roll over.

"I-I just want to talk, okay? I couldn't do so the last time, because your brother and the princess interrupted. I'm not here to hurt you, really!" Mr. L replied.

Mario was quiet, but his eyes still had a look of fear in them. No trust yet.

The Green Thunder looked down at the little wolf's belly. "Is that a tumor?" he asked solemnly, taking his hat off.

No reply for about five seconds, then Mario slowly shook his head. "No, it's not," he replied in a little whisper.

Mr. L sighed in relief. "Oh, good, I thought it was! I thought you were a goner!" he commented happily. But tuen his happiness soon faded. "But then...what is it?"

Before Mario could answer, another kick came from the baby that made him gasp in pain.

Mr. L was by his side in an instant. "What is it? What's wrong?" he asked, very concerned.

Mario wanted to answer, but then emotion suddenly overwhelmed him and he started to cry.

The Green Thunder didn't know what to do. "Mario, what's happening to you? Please tell me!" he pleaded.

The little wolf kept wiping his eyes, but more tears spilled out. "I-It's...it's the..." he tried to say. "It's the baby."

"What?" Mr. L said, confused. Then his eyes suddenly grew wide. "The _baby?!_" he cried out. He stood up abruptly. "Oh my God!"

Mario looked up from his tears to see Mr. L panicking beyond comprehension. It scared him to see the black-clad figure in this state.

"That night...when you stayed at my house..." Mr. L whispered to himself. "Oh, God, no, this is _all my fault!_ I'm so sorry! I'm sorry! I had _no idea_ that could actually happen!" His legs buckled and he fell to his knees. He buried his face into his hands again, sobbing.

Now Mario was really frightened, for Mr. L never cried. "What's wrong? What's your fault?" he asked, worried.

"I made you pregnant! That baby is inside you because of_ me!_" Mr. L sobbed. "Oh, Mario, I'm so sorry...!"


	17. Chapter 17

"What the hell is going on?!" Luigi shouted as the door banged open and the lights flooded on. Peach quickly followed behind him, tying on the ends of her bathrobe.

Mr. L jumped in fright when he heard all this commotion. Leaping to his feet, he grabbed his cap and fled from the room, out the door, still crying bitterly. Peach looked back at the retreating figure in sheer amazement while Luigi quickly went over to Mario. "Are you okay? Did he do anything to you?" he asked worriedly. He had to repeat that several times before Mario heard him.

The little wolf wiped his teary eyes and cleared his throat before he spoke. "I-It's okay, Weegee...h-he didn't do a-anything..."

"What happened, bro?" Luigi asked, still seeing that Mario had a look of terror on his face. "H-He just...talked for a bit. But th-then he s-started crying. I-I've never seen him do that...it w-was scary!"

Luigi was astounded. He had thought that the black-clad figure was unable to shed tears. "Why did he do that?"

Mario's throat choked up a bit. "H-He started saying...that it w-was all his fault. All his fault..." he was saying when his voice trailed off.

Luigi noticed. "Mario, listen to me. I know you might be scared right now, but just tell me: What was his fault? What did he do?"

Before Mario could answer, the baby kicked again, causing him to wince in pain.

"What is it? What's wrong?" Luigi asked worriedly. For a moment, he feared that the baby might be arriving, but this was way too soon. This couldn't be the labor pains!

Mario hated to admit it, but he knew he could not keep his secret any longer. It was time to tell. "Th-The baby...it hurts...when it kicks. N-Not at first, but...now it does...and I-I can't sleep when it does."

"Why didn't you tell me sooner?" Luigi asked in disbelief. "How long has it been happening?" He feared the worst. What if the baby really was coming? A million different scenarios played through his head, all of them bad.

"I don't know...two weeks?" Mario started tearing up again. "I-I know, I should have s-said something...but I didn't know how. A-And you and Peach...you're always busy now...and I-I didn't want to bother you..."

"Oh, Mario..." Luigi said as he sat on the bed and hugged his brother gently. The princess also walked over and sat next to Luigi, but she let him do the talking. "Peach and I will never be too busy to help you if you have a problem. Especially now, since you're getting close to the due date. If you have any problem, any at all, you can tell either me or Peach, okay?"

Mario nodded briefly and wiped his teary eyes. "Okay."

* * *

Mr. L's newest appearance had unnerved Luigi, so he had the castle guards know that if they saw the black-clad figure, they were to report to him immediately. Luigi knew that Mr. L hadn't harmed Mario, but he didn't want to take any more chances. The green-clad sibling was also rather concerned about Mr. L's crying, as both Mario and Peach had confirmed. What terrible thing had happened as to drive him to tears?

Another thing that worried Luigi were the painful kicks that Mario had been experiencing. He wanted to call Dr. Toadley, but the clinic was closed at this time, so that would have to wait.

* * *

"So, are we ready?" Daisy asked him later that morning, when the sun had come up. Luigi snapped himself out of his daze. "I-I guess..." he could only mutter.

"What?" Daisy asked. She came around to look at his face. "We're all ready...right? Or did something come up?"

"Something came up," Luigi said in a concerned tone. He turned to look at her. "Mr. L came. He went to see Mario in the middle of the night."

"Oh, gosh, did he do anything?" Daisy asked, shocked.

"According to Mario, no. He said that the two were talking...but then Mr. L started crying."

"Whoa!" Daisy exclaimed, her green eyes widening. "I didn't...whoa! I thought he couldn't cry. He's like a stone when it comes to emotions! Do you...do you think he knows about the baby?"

Luigi could only shake his head. "Mario didn't tell me if he did. He's still in shock; I haven't heard him speak at all this morning," he answered, rubbing the back of his head. "The last time we saw him, he thought that the bump in Mario's belly was a tumor or something."

"That could explain the tears. Knowing his only friend's about to die must have shattered him," Daisy stated simply. She knew the feeling; she'd lost two beloved cousins to cancer.

Luigi was quiet as well. He knew about Daisy's cousins and how much they meant to her.

Daisy cleared her throat after a minute. "So, what about the baby shower? That still on or what?"

"Yes, it's still on," Luigi decided, nodding. "But I think it should wait till Mario comes out of shock. I don't know what Mr. L said to him, but when I came, both of them were crying. It'd be best to wait a few days, a week at the most."

"Alright, I'll put the food back on the fridge so that they don't turn," Daisy said, nodding.

"And I'll inform the others," Luigi added.


	18. Chapter 18

He was gonna be a father.

A father.

Mr. L paced back and forth in the secludedness of his home. He was hyperventilating, but in his distress he didn't notice. A fierce headache throbbed in his head, so bad that he had to keep holding a hand against his temple. It kept pounding and pounding, making it hard to keep his train of thought on track.

_How the hell was Mario even able to get pregnant?!_ He wasn't female; he didn't have any girl parts!

It was just...impossible!

Nonetheless, Mr. L should have known. It was painfully obvious. That abnormal bump in Mario's belly wasn't a tumor at all (he was stupid for thinking so). That was the baby! No wonder the princess got so stiff and Luigi got so defensive when the bump was mentioned.

His own flesh and blood.

He shook his head fervently, still feeling a painful throb in his head. He couldn't believe that male pregnancy was even remotely possible. He couldn't believe that one day, that child might walk up and call him..._father_.

Mr. L suddenly let out a choked sob. This was overwhelming him. "How could I have done that to Mario?" he asked himself. A tear slipped down his face, and he could feel its smooth frigidness. "I took him, I hurt him, I _deflowered _him on that cursed night! He had suffered all those months, and I never said so much as sorry! I never helped him!"

Those last words derailed his train of thought. Mr. L stopped pacing around, trying to concentrate. Something had struck in his mind.

He hadn't helped the little wolf at all since the baby had been conceived. In fact, Mr. L just pretty much traumatized Mario even further with every visit, the poor thing.

Was he just going to sit here and complain further while Mario still carried his child?

A new feeling of determination began to brew within him. "No. I cannot just sit here in self-pity. Not anymore," he said grimly. He wiped his eyes and cleared his throat, erasing all signs of weakness. "I don't know when the baby will be due, but no way in hell am I gonna miss that. I will be there with him. It is about time I took on the responsibility of being a father.

"And...it is about time I apologize."

* * *

As soon as the clinic had opened at 9 AM, Luigi had immediately taken Mario back there. The red-clad sibling still winced in pain whenever the fetus kicked. The only good thing was that it didn't happen as often as before. But it was barely the start of the third trimester; was this normal?

Dr. Toadley had promptly started the monitor and taken a look at the baby. After a quick assessment, he confirmed that nothing was wrong with the child itself. The problem was that Mario's body had been straining itself for a while to make more room for the baby, who was now feeling cramped in the womb. Because of this, any brash movement within had been registered as pain. The doctor made a joke that the kid was feeling a tad cranky without room to wiggle in.

Unfortunately, Dr. Toadley could not prescribe any medicine to Mario, for he feared that anything too strong would harm the fetus. The purple-capped Toad did know that such medicines were widely available on Earth that would not be harmful, but sadly, none of those medicines were found here. The best he could do was give Mario was a bottle of 1-UP extract, and even then, it had to be taken sparingly, just a teaspoonful a day.

Even with his vast years of experience and medical training, Dr. Toadley had little experience with human pregnancies, and he knew that those were much different than Toads'. Along with the 1-UP extract, he recommended a few natural remedies, in hopes of easing the pain. But Dr. Toadley didn't have the heart to tell Mario that the pain wouldn't really go away until after delivery.

* * *

It took about two days for Mario to completely come out of shock from the recent night episode. In that time, he spent a large amount of time in his room, deep in thought. All was quiet; he didn't quite feel like talking with anyone.

Afterward, however, Mario started feeling better. He started talking again, though only to Peach and Luigi at first. His cheery smile was not yet back, but things looked promising. He never spoke of the Mr. L incident with Peach and Luigi, though, and they didn't know if that was a good thing or not. They didn't want to make him feel uncomfortable, so they didn't bring the issue up either.

Finally, he went downstairs (despite the inevitable stares of the Toads) for breakfast one morning. Even though Harold was still there, his angry glare-ever present, Mario tried his best to ignore everything.

"We haven't picked out a name," Mario said suddenly while eating with Luigi.

Luigi put down his spoon, realizing this too. "Oh, that's right. We haven't, huh?"

The elder sibling shook his head. "No. I know I said I didn't want to know the gender beforehand, but now...I don't know what we should name him or her." A shy blush appeared on his cheeks.

"Well, if you want, we can look up baby names on the Internet to see which names you like," Luigi said, smiling a bit. "I'll read the names and their meanings, and you tell me which ones you want."

A small smile finally blossomed on Mario's face. "Thank you, Weegee," he replied. "Hopefully, we can find something suitable."

Luigi nodded in content.

The two continued eating for a while until Mario spoke up again. "Do you ever wonder what he or she will look like?"

Luigi stopped eating again. "Yeah, I have, but not too much. Why? You wondering?"

"I've been thinking about it for the past few days," the little wolf replied in a soft, monotone voice. "Luigi...can I ask you something?"

This was the first time that he had brought up something from those tense days. Luigi couldn't help but lean in a little closer. "Yes?"

"I-I know we can't see everything on the...TV-screen thing, but...did you ever see the baby's eyes?" Mario asked, looking up at his brother. "I always wondered what his/her eyes might look like."

"No, I can't say I have. Before, the baby's eyes were undeveloped, and later on, he/she always kept them closed," Luigi replied.

Mario immediately leaned back. "Oh...o-okay then," he said, as if disappointed. "I'll guess we'll know when the baby is born." He resumed eating, with as half the energy as before.

Luigi didn't like the way his brother retreated into his shell. Something was upsetting him, and he bet it was more than just the baby's eyes.

* * *

**A/N: Hopefully, the baby shower will come real quick. Most likely in the next part. :D I hate having to push it back. D:**  
**Also, I don't expect anyone to feel pity for Mr. L, but don't worry, he's not a total ass. :P He's just really shocked that he's someone's daddy now. D:**

**I hope you all like reading this, and stay tuned for the next part! :D**


	19. Chapter 19

**A/N: GAHH, SO SORRY THIS IS LATE. I know it's been quite a while since I've last updated this story, but do not worry, I have started it up again! :D Now, sit back, relax, and enjoy this chapter!**  
**Also, the baby shower doesn't _quite_ start until the next one, so sorry about that. But the surprise is there at the end! :D**

* * *

"Hey, guys, sorry I'm late. Dude at the bakery had misplaced the order. But I got the goods!"

"That's great, Yoshi. Now we just need Toad with the - hey, you're here!"

"Yeah, sorry 'bout that, Luigi. The store I was at didn't didn't have any whipped cream in stock at the moment, for some weird reason. Had to head down to another place downtown for it. Heh, you would _think_ they'd have whipped cream and all..."

"It's no problem. We got it at least. So, guys, is everything all set?"

"Yeah, everything's good. We got all the decorations up."

"Food and goodies are ready to go!"

"All presents have been bought, and that party room's still ours for the taking."

"Party essentials are good to go."

"That's perfect. Now we just need to get _him_."

"Luigi...you sure he's up for the party? Last I saw him, he still looked pretty stiff. Maybe he's still thinking about...you know...that night?"

"He's fine, don't worry about it. He's just been thinking about the baby, that's all. Deciding on names and such. We spent last night looking up names, but he hasn't found any he likes yet."

"Oh...that's good to hear. I mean, I'd hate for the guest of honor to be all mopey and whiny at his party."

"Daisy!"

"What? It's true!"

"Alright, enough gab. I'm gonna go find him. Meanwhile, you guys get into position. But remember: no jumping and screaming. You all know how easily he gets scared, and the last thing we need is to accidentally trigger the baby's arrival before its time."

"Got it!"

"Don't worry about a thing; we got this, Luigi. Now - go get him."

* * *

Luigi had to search high and low for Mario until one Toad had told him that he had last been seen at the castle gardens. Once Luigi had gotten there, he found the little wolf sitting by himself in a certain flower patch, talking with some butterflies.

"Hey there, Mario," Luigi said as he came up to his brother.

Mario jumped in surprise, but then he eased down once he turned and saw Luigi. "Oh...hi, Weegee. I was just talking with some of my friends," he said, gesturing to the fluttering butterflies.

Luigi was very much relieved to see the small smile on his brother's face. It was a better sight than the serious face he had for the past few days. "That's nice. What are they talking about?" he asked.

"Oh, they're asking about my belly," Mario replied, blushing a bit. "I told them it was my baby, and then they got all excited and happy!"

Luigi was no butterfly whisperer, but he could easily see the happiness radiating from the tiny flying creatures. "Aww, that's sweet," he said, smiling. Then he turned back to his brother. "...Say, Mario, I was wondering if you could come with me. I need your help with something."

"Oh, sure, Weegee. What is it?" Mario asked as he tried his best to stand without falling over. Luckily, his brother was there to help him up.

"I'll let you know on the way. Kind of a long story," Luigi said casually as he led his brother inside the castle.

* * *

Some time later, Luigi was leading Mario down an unfamiliar-looking corridor. Doors stood on either side, with little balloon symbols and numbers engraved on the wood.

"So, what do you need help with?" Mario asked, curious.

"Um...actually, what I need help with is in that room," Luigi said, pointing to the room at the far end of the hall.

"Oh, okay. Let's go, then," Mario said as he started heading down the hall.

Luigi was quick to follow him. "_Gee, I hope there isn't anything weird at the end of the hall!_" he said in a particularly loud voice. The echoes of his voices practically bounced off the walls.

Mario turned back to look at his brother. "What?"

"Nothing, just keep going. We're almost there," Luigi quickly said with a fake smile as he continued walking Mario down the hall. Luckily, the little wolf merely shrugged in confusion and kept going.

As they came up to the room at the end of the hall, Luigi grabbed the door handle and fiddled with it. "_Oh, dear, I do believe the door is jammed!_" he said again in that same loud voice.

"Oh, should I get someone to help?" Mario asked, with a note of concern in his voice. "I-I can get someone if you wa -"

"Wait! Never mind. Looks like it's good after all," Luigi quickly said as he opened the door, with a big fake grin on his face. "See? It's open!"

The two brothers walked inside. It was completely dark; only the light from the hallway showed a dim view.

"I can't see anything..." Mario said, looking around. Then he turned to Luigi. "What did you need help with, again?"

* * *

At that moment, a click sounded and the lights suddenly flickered on. Both Mario and Luigi had to blink to adjust to the sudden change.

"_Surprise!_" Peach, Daisy, Yoshi, Toad and Toadsworth cheered happily. They all had balloons and confetti in their hands, which they were quick to toss at the two brothers.

Luigi grinned, knowing this was coming, but Mario was wide-eyed, completely blown away. "What...!" he managed to say as he looked around the room. Pink and blue banners with symbols of babies, binkies, blankets and things like that were hung from the ceiling. Some of the tables were covered in party supplies, with others sporting snacks and drinks. One other table carried a plethora of presents, all nicely wrapped and in-tune with the pink-and-blue theme. Various balloons dangled from the ceiling, and more banners were strung alongside the wall. This all looked like a party...but what for? He didn't think it was anyone's birthday today.

Mario swallowed, managing to find his voice again. "Wh-What is this...?" he asked breathlessly. "Why is...?"

Daisy bounced right up to him. "It's your baby shower, dummy!" she said excitedly as she bopped his head with a balloon that she still carried in her hands. "Ta-daa~!"

"Baby shower...? But the baby's not out of me yet..." Mario replied, confused by this term. "We're not giving the baby a shower, are we...?"

Peach walked up to him and hugged him gently before saying, "Oh, no, honey. A baby shower is just a name. It's sorta like a small party that we throw for some people to celebrate the fact that they're having babies."

"Yep! Congratulations, mommy-to-be!" Daisy chirped as she shared a side-hug with the little wolf. "So, what's it gonna be, huh? Is Auntie Daisy gonna have a niece or a nephew? You gotta tell me, man, I'm itching with excitement!"

"Daisy, I already told you that Mario wants it to be a surprise," Luigi said with a smile, rolling his eyes.

The floral princess visibly groaned. "Awwww! I wanted to know!" she whined. Then she immediately brightened up again. "Well, it doesn't matter, because I know for sure that my present's gonna be the best one!"

"Uh, I don't think so! Mine's gonna be the best!" Yoshi exclaimed as he came up to Daisy. He then turned to Mario and pointed towards the table that had all the presents sitting on it. "It's that big one right there in the middle! You're gonna love it, I'm sure!"

"What about me?" Toad piped up as he ran over as well. "I think mine's gonna be the best one!"

"Nuh-uh! I already said mine's the best one!" Daisy contradicted. She then turned to Mario. "Come on, tell them! Tell them mine's the best!"

"Um..." Mario said, a little confused. "B-But I haven't even op -"

"Everyone, settle down," Toadsworth said with a quiver of his mustache as he, too, walked over to the group. "This is a baby shower for Mario, not a contest to see which present is the best one...besides, I know mine'll be the best."

"Toadsworth!" everyone except Mario said.

Toadsworth chuckled lightly. "I'm joking," he said. "Now, let us all settle down, so the festivities can begin."


	20. Chapter 20

**A/N: Again, I apologize for the long delay. D: This story has a lot of different plot holes that I am currently fixing. But I really hope you enjoy this chapter, and please have patience for the next one. Hopefully, it won't take too long this time. c:**

* * *

Mario had never known how much fun baby showers could be. After eating some of the delicious cupcakes and cookies that Yoshi and Toad had brought in (Yoshi was the only one who ate more than Mario had), they all played some games.

Some games included the baby food game, in which everyone had to eat certain flavors of baby food (with the lid taken off) and guess which flavor it was. Unfortunately, poor Toadsworth had the most bad-tasting flavors. Then they moved on to the toilet paper game, where everyone was to guess how many rolls of toilet paper could span Mario's belly without overlapping. It turned out to be Peach who won, with approximately 11 sheets.

They also played the cotton ball game, where two people were blindfolded and they had to get as many cotton balls as they could on a plate over their head. The catch was that they had to use a spoon. It came really close between Luigi and Daisy, but Daisy won it in the end. Of course, she really cherished the victory.

* * *

Once the excitement of the food and games had settled, it was time for Mario to open the gifts. The problem was: which one would he open first?

"Here, Mario, open mine! It's totally gonna be the best one!" Daisy said excitedly as she gestured to a very large present sitting on the floor adorned with tiny flowers on it.

"No way! We already told you ours was the best!" Yoshi cut in. Toad pointed to another one next to Daisy's.

"Everyone, please calm down. Let Master Mario choose which one he should open first," Toadsworth spoke as he sneakily pushed his gift closer to the little wolf.

Luigi rolled his eyes at all this. He cleared his throat. "Guys, _really_. You're all acting like kids. Grow up and let him decide for himself."

"Ugh, fine. But I still think mine's the best," Daisy huffed as she sat back in her seat. Yoshi and Toad also slunk back in their seats, mumbling something similar.

With curious eyes, Mario looked over the presents. All had been wrapped in pink and blue with varying designs, and were all different shapes and sizes. Some were in boxes, while others weren't.

Which one would he open first...?

His eye caught sight of one present sitting near the back. It was rather small compared to the others, but it was nicely wrapped with a pink bow.

He pointed to it. "Can I open that one first?" he asked.

Luigi turned to it. "Alright," he said as he took the present and handed it to him.

Daisy was confused. "Whose present is that?" she asked, scratching her head.

Peach smiled sheepishly. "That one's mine," she replied.

"He should have opened ours first," Yoshi whispered to Toad. Toad gave a little nod in response.

Mario carefully undid the wrapping as best as he could, since he felt it would be rude to tear it off. Once it was off, he saw that it was a white box with a pink lid on it. When he opened the box, his eyes widened with glee and he gasped. "Oh...!"

Inside was a soft, fuzzy blanket that had been carefully handmade. It was a soft red color with little stars dancing among it. It was exactly like Wolfie's own blankie, but a different color and size.

"Hey, now you and your baby will match," Peach said, a sweet smile on her face. "I figured red would be a good color whether it's a boy or girl."

"Oh, I-I love it!" Mario beamed excitedly. "Thank you, this is amazing!" Smiling, he put the little blanket back in the box and closed the lid gently.

"Now mine! Open mine next, please!" Daisy said, pushing her present closer.

"No, _we_ should be next!" Yoshi and Toad insisted.

"Guys! What did I just say?" Luigi scolded. "Are you all gonna keep acting like kids?"

"Um, _yeah!_ This _is_ a party for the new baby, after all! I think we're entitled to a little compensation, like having our present opened next!" Yoshi spoke up, a charming smile ever-present on his face.

"I'll open yours next," Mario replied shyly, hoping Daisy wouldn't be too upset.

"Alright! Sweet!" Toad cheered. He quickly pushed the present right up to Mario. "Here you go!"

This present was pretty large compared to Peach's. It wasn't in a box, he could tell. But he couldn't tell what was inside it, other than the fact that it was bumpy towards the bottom.

Carefully, he undid the bow and unwrapped the paper. Once he removed, his eyes widened once again. "Oh...!"

This was a large red basket, adorned with tiny stars along the ridges. Inside was a multitude of fruits, grains, and even some baby food. There were even some pre-cooked meals toward the bottom of the pile that would only need to be heated in the microwave.

"See? Now you don't have to cook anything for a while! We know how tiring it'll be after the kid's out, so we decided to prep your meals for you in advance!" Yoshi explained.

"Do you like it?" Toad asked excitedly.

"I do like it!" Mario said, smiling. "You even got strawberries!" He looked down happily at the little bowl of strawberries tucked away neatly. "Thank you, Yoshi and Toad!"

"Now, I believe my present shall be next," Toadsworth spoke up, pushing his gift toward Mario again. "It should prove most useful to you!"

"Okay," Mario agreed as he took hold of the present. It was a bit larger than Yoshi and Toad's, but slightly more narrow and less heavy. He took off the bow and wrapping paper, wondering what it could be.

It turned out to be a large diaper bag. It was white with pink and blue trimming, and had monogrammed butterflies etched into it.

"Oh! It's adorable!" Mario gasped happily. He gently touched the butterfly embroidery, marveling at how well stitched it was.

"And if you open it, you'll find a variety of diapers, bottles, and bibs, along with some matching outfits," Toadsworth continued. "They'll fit the child when it gets a little bigger."

Mario opened the bag and saw the items. He marveled at the little outfits, and they had little mittens and booties attached. They were simply adorable!

"They're really cute, Toadsworth, thank you!" Mario said, snuggling the outfits a bit before putting them back in the bag.

* * *

"_Alright!_ It's my turn!" Daisy cheered. She gestured to the biggest present sitting on the floor.

Mario's eyes widened. This present in particular was enormous. It couldn't even fit on the table! What exactly had Daisy gotten him?

"Here, let me unwrap it for you and you just stay seated, alright?" Daisy continued as she jumped up and ran over to the gift. She quickly tore off the bow and the wrapping paper, then stood back. "Ta-daa~!"

Everyone's jaw hit the floor. Daisy had gotten him an actual go-kart. It seemed to be based off a baby carriage, except it didn't have any color or design to it. But it was the ideal size for a small-class racer.

"You got a _go-kart?_" Peach asked in shock.

"Damn, that's a good present," Yoshi couldn't help saying.

"We should've gotten that!" Toad whispered in awe.

"Yep! I had it modeled after a baby carriage so that the kid can start racing! I even left it unpainted so that he or she can design it however they want!" Daisy gushed.

Luigi raised an eyebrow. "Don't you think the baby will be too young to drive at this rate?"

"Nonsense! My parents had me in the go-karts ever since I could sit up! The kid's gonna love it, trust me! They'll be winning races in no time!" Daisy contradicted happily. She then turned to Mario. "Whaddaya think, Mommy-to-be? You like it?"

Mario wasn't sure that he was comfortable with the idea of letting his baby race at such an early age, but he didn't want to disappoint Daisy. She was practically bouncing off the walls with excitement. "...I do like it," he finally said, managing a smile. "Maybe we can wait a bit for them to race, but I like it."

"Alright! This'll be awesome!" Daisy cheered. "I can't wait!" Then she turned to Luigi. "Alright, future uncle. Where's your gift?"

"It's on the table," Luigi said, pointing.

Everyone turned to look, but then they turned back. There wasn't another present on the table.

"Um, you sure? I mean, unless you got him wrapping paper, I don't see it there," Daisy said, crossing her arms in confusion.

Luigi was also confused. "What? But I'm sure I put it there!" he said as he got up and took a glance himself at the table. "What the-? Where is it? I had it with me...!" He quickly looked behind and under the table in case it had fallen over.

"Luigi...?" Mario asked in concern.

Said brother's eyes widened. "Oh! I must have left it in my room!" he cried. "I must have been so excited about this whole party, I forgot!" Turning to Mario, he added. "I'm sorry, Bro; I'll go and get it, okay? I'll be right back!"

Without another word, Luigi turned and ran out of the room.

* * *

"How could I have forgotten the present? I had everything all arranged and prepped for this!" Luigi mentally scolded himself as he climbed up the stairs to his room in the castle. As he opened the door, he saw the pink-and-blue present neatly sitting on his desk, waiting for him.

"Well, at least I didn't forget to wrap it. That would've sucked," he said as he came over and picked it up. Hurriedly, he turned back and ran back out the door, hoping to make it to the party room quickly. But Luigi was going so fast that he accidentally bumped into someone, causing the two of them to crash to the floor. The present also slipped out of his hands and slide across the floor. But luckily, the contents inside weren't damaged.

"Oops! I-I'm really sorry, I didn't mean to -"Luigi started to apologize as he got the present and hauled himself up. However, he stopped mid-sentence as soon as he looked up and saw just _who_ he happened to bump into.

It was Mr. L.


End file.
